BETWEEN THE WARS

Modern World History

C. Corning – Feb. 2010

LEAGUE OF NATIONS The League of Nations was created in

1919 by the peace treaties that ended WWI.

Two goals: (1) keep peace among nations and (2) make the world a better place for ALL people. (Including colonies?)

Member nations had to sign a promise that they would not go to war with other member nations AND if a member attacked another member, the other nations would defend the country under attack (Collective Security)

LEAGUE OF NATIONS There were only three peace-keeping

actions the League of Nations could take against a member nation:Legal means – Court of International JusticeEconomic sanctions - member nations

would not trade with the attacker, thus threatening economic ruin for the attacker

Military sanctions – forming a League of Nations army (from the member nations) to fight the attacker

** In first ten years, League dealt with 9 disputes

LIMITATIONS OF LEAGUE Not every nation was a member.

USA – policy of isolationism USSR – “capitalist” club

Some members lacked “enthusiasm” for the League. Germany – excluded until 1926, club of

“victors” The League’s ability to keep the peace had

never been fully tested by 1929 (guess who is going to test them!) No proof that League could settle a dispute

between two major powers – OR that sanctions could stop a war.

EUROPE AFTER THE WAR 1920s European nations were rebuilding

after the war.Only U.S. and Japan were in good financial

shapeEurope had to borrow money from the U.S.

From 1914-1918 the last of Europe’s absolute monarchies were overthrownRussia, Germany and Austro-Hungary

New democracies took their placeMultiple parties, need for coalition

governmentDifficult to govern effectively

GERMANY New democratic gov’t established in 1919 –

Weimar Republic Many weaknesses:

Germany lacked a democratic tradition Too many political parties Germans blamed the Weimar gov’t for

country’s defeat and the Treaty of Versailles Germany faced big economic issues:

Inflation – too much money printed to pay war expenses

Reparation payments Dawes Plan – by 1929 Germany was producing

as much as before the war

RUSSIA/SOVIET UNION Lenin died in 1924 – Stalin assumes power in 1929

after forcing Trotsky into exile Stalin wanted the Soviet Union to be one of the most

powerful nations in the world Totalitarianism – a gov’t that takes total, centralized

STATE control of every aspect of public and private life (see pg 441) Leaders give a sense of security and direction for the

future Uses secret police to crush opposition and create an

environment of fear to control people Challenges the values most prized by democracies:

reason, freedom, individuality, etc. Tool: terror, indoctrination, propaganda, censorship and

religious/ethnic persecution Economic measures: Five-Year Plan and collective farms

JAPAN During the 1920s the Japanese

government became more democratic and built international relations

However Japan’s parliamentary system had weaknesses:Constitution put limits on the powers of the

Prime Minister and the cabinentCivilian leaders had little control over the

armed forcesMilitary leaders reported only to the

emperor

JAPAN 1929 Great Depression hit Japan hard –

citizens blamed the gov’t Military leaders gained control of the

country however unlike the fascism in Europe they did NOT try to establish a new system of gov’t Militarists were nationalists Wanted to restore traditional control of gov’t

to military Made Emperor Hirohito symbol of state power Goal: solve Japan’s economic problems

through foreign expansion

JAPAN – PLANS FOR A PACIFIC EMPIRE

1931 Japan seized Manchuria (China’s NE province) Japanese parliament opposed action Japanese business had invested there Rich in iron and coal 1932 the Army set up puppet government with Puyi,

the last Qing emperor, installed as the nominal regent and emperor (Japan really control the gov’t)

This was the first direct challenge to the League of Nations – Japan ignored protests and withdrew from the League in 1933

1937 – Sino-Japanese War – Japan invades China and captures northern cities

GREAT DEPRESSION Photos on other Power Point (see our

blog) Oct 1929 Black Tuesday – share prices

on Wall Street fell – basically worthless Depression began in the US and then

spread to most other countriesDepression: a severe economic slump/a

sustained, long-term downturn in economic activity

Germany and Austria hit very hard because of war debts and dependence on American loans and investments

DEPRESSION - IMPACT How did Depression affect world peace?

(1) gov’ts tried to protect their citizens with new economic policies (protectionism) These policies of protectionism and self-sufficiency

harmed international relations. (2) Depression caused social unrest among the

people of many countries Germany 6 out of 64 million by 1934, Japan

experienced idle factories/peasants starving (3) Massive unemployment – people blamed

their gov’ts – this led to the collapse of democratic governments in Germany and Japan New gov’ts acted agressively towards other countries

in order to improve the situations in their countries

PROBLEMS WITH EMPIRES The Great Depression added to another problem

that was threatening world peace in 1929 Division of world: empire haves and have nots Britain and France owned the largest empires in

1929 – why? How did this effect world peace?

(1) Other countries envied these empires and wanted to expand

(2) Britain and France avoided the worst impacts of the Depression – other countries wanted to do the same

(3) Local peoples wanted the same right of self-determination that European nations received

(4) Britain and France had to keep large, expensive armies and did NOT want to disarm – why?

RISE OF FASCISM Many democracies remained strong despite

the Depression: U.S., Great Britain, France, Scandinavian countries

For many of the younger/weaker democracies, the citizens lost faith and turned to Fascism: Germany, Italy, Spain, Hungary, Poland

Fascism: militant political movement that emphasized loyalty to the state and obedience to its leader. (see pg 477) Extreme form of nationalism – loyalty to an

authoritarian leader Lots of militarist influence – uniforms, units,

salutes

FASCISM VS COMMUNISM Comparisons:

Rule by dictator – the STATE was supreme One-party system Denial of individual rights

Differences: Fascism had no clearly defined theory or

program Did not seek a classless society Fascist leaders tend to aristocrats, industrialists,

war veterans and the lower middle class – WHY? Fascists were nationalists – communists were

international (“workers of the world unite”)

ITALY AND SPAIN Italy - Benito Mussolini – Il Duce (Leader) – 1922

Fascism spread because of Italy’s disappointment with the 1919 Paris Peace Conference

Also rising inflation and umemployment People lost trust/faith in their democratic gov’t Fascist Party formed 1919 – Black Shirts

Spain – Gen. Francisco Franco – dictator 1939 1936 Civil War between the Nationalists (Fascists)

and the Republicans (supported elected gov’t) Western democracies remained neutral; Germany,

Italy (Nat’l) and Soviet Union (Rep) got involved

GERMANY

GERMANY

EUROPEAN RESPONSE TO FASCISM Rather than taking a stand, most Great

Britain and France made concessions, hoping to keep peaceStill dealing with economic issues from the

DepressionDeep desire to avoid war

U.S. continued to follow a policy of Isolationism1935 Congress pass the Neutrality Acts

which banned loans and the sale of arms to nations at war.