Failures of the League in the 1920s

• Vilna, 1920:

  • Following the Versailles settlement, Vilna, with a largely Polish population, was made the capital of the newly formed state of Lithuania.
  • A Polish army seized the city in 1920; as a result of which Lithuania appealed to the League.
  • The League requested for Polish troops to withdraw while a plebiscite was arranged but Poland refused.
  • The matter was then passed on to the Conference of Ambassadors who took the path of least resistance and awarded Vilna to Poland.
• Ruhr, 1923:

  • When Germany refused to pay reparations in 1922, the matter should have been referred to the League.
  • Instead, France, supported by Belgium, decided to take swift and unilateral action. They did this by ordering their troops to occupy the Ruhr in January 1923.
  • This action served to confirm the impression of many that the League was little more than a visitors' club for the pursuit of victors' interests.
• In August 1923, Mussolini ordered the naval bombardment and occupation of Greek island Corfu
• This was a response to the murder of an Italian general and some of his staff on Greek soil
• Mussolini demanded 50 Million Lira and execution of the assassins in compensation
• Greece failed to meet these demands

  Mussolini resorted to direct action
• Greece appealed to the League
• The League's initial response was to condemn the invasion
• Mussolini insisted the final arbitration should be passed on to the Conference of Ambassadors
• Conference of Ambassadors ordered Greece to pay compensation and Italy to withdraw its troops from Corfu


  Created the impression that Italy's bullying tactics worked since the Conference took the line of least resistance without regard for justice
• Agreements made outside the League:

  • The leading European powers had little faith in the League's ability to deal with major challenges during the 1920s.
  • This lead them to set up mutual assistance pacts.
  • An example of this is the Kellog-Briand pact of 1928, signed between Germany, France and United States on 27th August.