League of Nations and Collective Security Essay

Submitted By wammy94
Words: 1868
Pages: 8
Open Document
Was The League Of Nations successful in achieving its aims?
Following the catastrophic events of World War One and the Paris Peace Conference at the palace of Versailles, it was decided by the victorious allies of the war to set up a League which ultimately aimed to prevent another mass conflict. President of The United States of America, Woodrow Wilson, believed it was essential that an organisation was set up in order to prevent future crisis, he wanted to move away from balance of power which was believed to be one of the underlying reasons to why World War One began and to instead set up a system based on collective security (Nye 2013:112-113). In order to understand if the League of Nations was successful in achieving its aims one must firstly discuss the aims themselves and come to a rational conclusion on whether or not these aims were met. The main aims that the League adopted after 1919 were firstly to encourage international disarmament in which law would be the fundamental component in resolving disputes instead of war (Brown and Ainley, 2009:21). The league also aimed to enforce the points set out in The Treaty of Versailles aimed towards Germany. Thirdly one of the Leagues primary purposes was to put a halt to war and any possible future conflict again by using a means of collective security with a basic assumption of ‘one for all and all for one’ (Brown, Ainley:21). Finally the league wanted to improve global living and working conditions by the means of advances in health care, putting an end to human and drug trafficking, monitor arms trade and to look after any inhabitants of occupied countries. Certainly the league did experience several major successes in aspects of health care and resolving international disputes but without doubt the failures override the initial success of the League. Nevertheless an argument must be put forward to come to a valid conclusion on how successful The League of Nations ultimately were by the time they were dissolved at the end of World War Two. Firstly in order to discuss how successful the League was in achieving its aims, the successes must be mentioned as although the League did fail on many of the aims proposed it did enjoy a period of success nearer the start of its formation. To start with during the 1920s the League managed to resolve many debates with countries and was successful in preventing war on several accounts. The first major success that the League had was the resolution of the dispute over the Aland Islands between Finland and Sweden in 1920 (Henig 2010:204). When the issue was put to the notice of the League they decided that the islands should be put under control of Finland, this ultimately prevented a possible war between the two countries. Later in 1921 a dispute of the Saar lands between Germany and Poland was resolved by simply splitting the land with the countries. Several further major disputes were referred to the League such as ones between Poland and Lithuania, between Iraq and Turkey and also between Greece and Bulgaria. Between a period from 1922 and 1939 sixty six disputes were put forward to the League which showed that ‘rules had a place in international politics’ and that using a governing body to solve international problems was the way forward (Henig:175). Keylor also puts forward the idea that the League will be remembered for creating the idea that the nations of the world cannot rely on anarchic rivalry to keep peace in the world (Keylor: 98) Nonetheless despite the resolution of some disputes and the policy of collective security a future world war was not prevented. What also must be considered is the fact that the League did manage to improve working and living conditions throughout the world. After the war the League helped form the World Health Organisation which helped to ‘co-ordinate an international response to the spread of typhus, influenza and others’ (Keylor: 98) certainly concerning health the League
Show More

Related Documents: League of Nations and Collective Security Essay

Pros And Cons Of The Treaty Of Versailles

peace, equality, rights, opportunity, liberty, and democracy to the other countries by forming an international organization called the League of Nations and the creation of the Fourteen Points. The United States should have ratified the Treaty of Versailles because it would have benefit all nations. The ratification of the treaty would bring peace to all nations and could prevent future wars. The first and second points of the Fourteen Points stated that countries need to end all secret treaties…

Words 572 - Pages 3

Essay about Leauge of nations and why it was doomed

The league of nations and its idea of collective security failed, mainly due to the absence of major problems and the actions of its main members. The league was not inherently flawed but was doomed to fail due to problems and bad choices that occurred when the league was made. The responsibility lies in the major powers who failed to uphold collective security. From its origin, the league took a harsh blow when the united states rejected the invitation to the league. After World War one the U.S…

Words 556 - Pages 3

How Did George Washington's Farewell Address

final message to the nation. Washington discussed many issues in his farewell address but focused mainly on foreign policy, and in the end, stated that it was in America’s best interest to avoid permanent alliances and foreign conflict. The United States did not take the advice of their first president by making alliances in Samoa and becoming involved in foreign affairs in the Americas, causing the United States to become involved in unnecessary conflict with other nations. However, the US did adhere…

Words 812 - Pages 4

Balance Of Power Research Paper

opposition. However Wilson disagreed with this notion and sought to insert collective security which is exemplified with the idea of a League of Nations as part of his renowned fourteen point plan. As well as this Wilson also wanted to instil a sense of self determination within Europe for nations such as Poland. In this essay I will explain Wilson's problems with the balance of power and more about his idea of 'collective security' which he tried to replace it with. The first problem that Wilson had…

Words 1280 - Pages 6

The League Of Nations Cheat Sheet 2 Essay

THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS Setting up the League of Nations The Organization of the League The rules of the League =League Covenant and formed part of each peace treaty. The League officially begun its work in January 1920. Geneva was chosen for the League headquarters because it was in Switzerland, which had a long tradition of neutrality. Some officials worked permanently for the League in Geneva. They were known as the Secretariat. Power in the League lay with a much smaller body known as the League…

Words 3565 - Pages 15

The Bankruptcy Of Collective Security

The Bankruptcy of the Collective Security Global History Submitted to : Barry Halloran Submitted by :Oriane Misonne A) Reminder: what the "collective security"? The collective security designates the mode of organization of the international relations of the interwar period. Fruit of the Conferences of Peace held in Versailles after the Great War, it joins completely in line with the optics of the 14 points of Wilson and is inaugurated by the League of Nations. Carried by the pacifist fervour…

Words 3701 - Pages 15

How Did The Treaty Of Versailles Lead To Ww1

clause. Every country except U.S. who fought signed the treaty, but Germany was forced to pay large amounts of money. Germany is now broke, and they cant have an army because reduction in weapons. Germany had to take full blame for WW1. The League of Nations formed an alliance. President Woodrow Wilson has Fourteen Points for world peace to end war. These Fourteen points were used for peace negotiations after World War 1. Wilson set out specific goals that he wanted to achieve through the war…

Words 309 - Pages 2

treaty of versailles Essay

specifically with Germany and was the major discussion during the draw up of the peace settlement whereas the other treaties dealt with the geo-political and economic future of Europe. • The agreement containing the principles on which the League of Nations was to operate on took into account all five treaties. 1.2.2 The Treaty of Versailles •June 1919 •Treaty with Germany •Was signed in the Palace of Versailles •Germany had to agree to accept full responsibility for the outbreak of…

Words 335 - Pages 2

Why Did Roosevelt And Truman Succeed Where Wilson Failed?

leadership, and advocated U.S. participation in the League of Nations, a collective body designed to ensure international peace, security, and prosperity. Most Americans rejected Wilson’s overtures, however. Beginning in 1937 Franklin Roosevelt (and Truman after FDR’s death) made arguments similar to those of Wilson and ultimately built widespread public support for full involvement in World War II and postwar international organizations like the United Nations, the IMF and World Bank, etc. Why did Roosevelt…

Words 2087 - Pages 9

Was World War 1 Inevitable

it is very difficult to have a new great power war. I do not believe that World War III is inevitable because the world is economically interdependent and the world has advanced far too much technologically. Being that China is the largest trading nation in the world, it plays a vital role in international trade, thus would not ignite a new great power war. Putin is a Russian nationalist, who believes in a powerful Stalinist country. His goal is to reverse the dissolution of the Soviet state. Some…

Words 1219 - Pages 5