What this lesson teaches
I can examine how the League of Nations tried to keep the peace in the 1920s and what happened.
Syllabus K230, After World War I, Learning Outcomes. Examine the attempts at collective security in the 1920s and its outcomes.
Make a guess
The League of Nations was set up in 1920 to stop wars. What do you think it would do if a country attacked another?
- Ask its members to act together with sanctions, or perhaps troops.
- Hold discussions, because talks were the one tool it had.
- Send its own permanent League army to fight and defeat the attacker.
Show the answer
Ask its members to act together with sanctions, or perhaps troops.
This was collective security. But the League had no army, so it depended on governments keeping their promises.
The League of Nations relied on collective security, members acting together against an aggressor, so it only worked if governments kept their promises.
The League of Nations began work in 1920. Its founding rules, the Covenant, set out ways to avoid war. Countries could discuss disputes, or ask a neutral body to judge them. This is arbitration. Members promised to respect each other's land and independence.
A country that went to war against the rules could face economic sanctions, where other countries cut trade and financial links with it. The League's Council could also ask governments to send troops. This was collective security. Members would act together, so an attacker would face many countries, not just its victim.
But the League had no army of its own. It depended on governments to provide troops and enforce sanctions. Many decisions needed unanimity, meaning all the members involved had to agree. Britain and France were the leading members, but acting against an aggressor could clash with their own money or security interests.
The USA never joined, so the League lacked the backing of a great power. Germany was kept out at first, but joined in 1926. So the League's rules mattered, but governments still had to choose to cooperate.
- 1920
- League of Nations begins work.
- Collective security
- Members act together against an aggressor.
- Weaknesses
- No army; USA never joined; decisions often needed all to agree.
Worked example: Why sanctions need everyone
Suppose members stop selling key goods to an aggressor, but other suppliers keep trading.
- Sanctions aim to make aggression costly.
- If others keep selling, the cost falls.
- So check who actually stopped trading before saying sanctions worked.
Watch out for this
The League could send its own army whenever a country attacked.
The League had no army. It depended on member governments to act.
Check your understanding
What was the League's biggest practical weakness?
- It refused to use arbitration, so disputes went straight to war.
- It had no army and relied on members to act.
- It depended on American troops, who left after the USA quarrelled with it.
Show the answer
It had no army and relied on members to act.
Yes. Without governments' help, it could not enforce its rules.