Was the League of Nations destined to fail?

• Moral condemnation was little more than going 'tut tut'. Powerful countries weren't scared of moral condemnation
• Economic sanctions didn't work because countries could still trade with countries that weren't in the League such as the USA and the USSR
• The League had no army of its own, so couldn't intervene without using armies of its member countries
• America refused to join the League, despite it being US President Woodrow Wilson's idea from the start, as the US Senate voted against it
• The League's structure was complex:

  • The Assembly only met once a year, decision making was slow and decisions had to be unanimous
  • The Council, including the four permanent members of Britain, France, Italy and Japan could veto proposals
  • The Permanent Court of International Justice could only issue advice, it couldn't make countries follow it's rulings
• The Great Depression meant countries were concerned with their own problems. It also meant that people turned to extremist dictators such as Hitler and Mussolini, who were keen to invade other countries
• Britain and France weren't willing to contribute soldiers to the League to enforce decisions. They also weren't prepared to act against their countries own self interest
• Russia was excluded as it was a Communist country, only joining much later in 1934
• Germany was excluded as it had lost the war, only joining later in 1926
• Later on, Japan and Italy, then Germany, chose to leave the League of Nations. Japan left in 1933, Germany in 1933 then Italy in 1936
• The League could have done more, but would anything have stopped these countries acting? Historian H.A.L. Fisher: 'A country which is determined to have a war can always have it'
• Kershaw argues that the League's failure was a result of two factors - a clamp, if you will. Britain and France's self interest is one side, the predatory nature of Germany and Italy is the other, overall leading to the demise and failure of the League to achieve its original aim