Lernmaterialien für Conflict & Tension an der Birmingham City University

• Germany and Austria - Nazi propaganda pushed the narrative of Austria being in chaos, which was only partly true as Austria declared bankruptcy in 1921 as well as facing challenge from the Great Depression. Though 99% of the population did vote for Anschluss, Austria was still home to ~180,000 Jews, who faced anti-Semitic attacks, arrested at random to be imprisoned or forced to scrub the streets or toilets with prayer cloths. Thousands of Jews fled the country as quick as they could to escape persecution from the Nazis.
• Britain - ignored Schuschnigg's request for support. Majority of the population felt that Germany and Austria were essentially the same country, and anti-war and anti-Versailles sentiments were still held by many people, so there was little enthusiasm to be involved. However, there were some - such as Winston Churchill - who were opposed to Anschluss and argued that Germany should've negotiated the terms rather than invading.
• France - was suffering from its own political problems, with the entire French government resigning due to unrest caused by economic issues  just 2 days before Anschluss. Without the support of Britain, there was no way France would act either.
• Czechoslovakia - now surrounded on 3 sides as a result of Anschluss, the Czechoslovakian government knew they would be the next target for Hitler's expansion of Lebensraum into the east. France was bound by a previous treaty to protect Czech independence and, with the support of Britain, would promise to support Czechoslovakia should they be invaded.

• In December 1934, a clash of forces at Wal Wal Oasis on the border with Somaliland acted as the spark to justify invasion.
• In October 1935, Mussolini built up forces for invasion and attacked under the guise of "bringing civilisation" to Abyssinia. 
• Mussolini used modern aircraft and chemical weapons to defeat poorly armed soldiers. By May 1936, Italy had control of more than half of the country, including the capital city of Addis Ababa

• Denmark remained neutral in the war but was given North Schleswig which it had lost in 1860
• Losing the Pose Corridor splits Germany in two, which along with Upper Silesia forms the new country of Poland. Which would cause problems that lead to Germany's invasion of Poland, starting WW2.
• Up to 7 million Germany speakers were lost, mostly to Poland, but also to Britain, France, Denmark, Belgium, and the new country of Lithuania. This would also cause problems as civilians of different languages and cultures forced together.

• Missing key members (Germany, US, USSR)
• A 'winners club' as the LON largely relied on the influence of superpowers like Britain and France who were ultimately interested in preserving their own interests 
• No military force - army had to be supplied by member states
• Greater interest for nationalism rather than internationalism
• Instability as even allied states like Turkey, Italy, and Japan were unhappy with the outcome of the ToV, (specifically regarding territory)

• In September 1931, the Kwantung army staged an attack on the Japanese South Manchuria railway, accusing China for the attack
•  The army quickly seized control Mukden, then the whole Manchurian region, establishing a puppet state called Manchukuo as a colony for Japanese settlers 6 months later.
• In 1933, Japan resigned from the LON and took over the province of Jehol. In 1936, Japan took over inner Mongolia and extended the war across Northern and Western China by bombing Shanghai. In 1937, the Chinese capital of Nanking was captured and thousands of civilians were murdered.
• By 1938, most major Chinese cities were under Japanese control

• The LON put together a commission of inquiry led by Lord Lytton, who put together the Lytton Report in October 1932. 
• The report found Japan to be in the wrong, and the 42 member states of the LON condemned Japanese actions
• Little further action was taken despite China's appeals.  When the USA attempted to intervene with an oil embargo, Japan launched a pre-emptive strike on Pearl Harbour in December 1941, dragging the US into WW2

In 1925, Greek soldiers were killed on the Bulgarian border and Greece invaded. Bulgaria appealed to the LON for help, who issued moral condemnation to Greece and ordered for troops to be withdrawn and compensation to be payed. Greece claimed the League was being hypocritical as Italy were allowed to get away with similar actions in Corfu (1923), but complied as Greece was a small country that could not risk having poor relations with powerful countries. Though this conflict was 'resolved', it relied on the power and influence of Britain and France rather than the League's ability to resolve problems.

After WW1 collapsed the Austro-Hungarian Empire, many new independent states were formed including Poland and Lithuania. Vilna was to be the capital of Lithuania, however the majority of the population wished to be part of Poland. In 1920, the Polish army took control of the city and Lithuania appealed to the LON for help. Poland was told to remove their army, but refused. No further action was taken as France saw Poland as a potential ally against Germany and Britain would not send troops in without further support of other countries. This was a failure for the LON as the first conflict they had to resolve was largely ignored by them.

• Germany - banned from joining as per the Treaty of Versailles. Joined in 1926 after the signing of the Locarno Pact (Dec 1925)
• USSR - prevented from joining out of fear of the threat of communism. Joined in September 1934
• USA - chose not to join as Wilson's isolationist focus on governing the US and did not approve of the outcome of the Treaty of Versailles

• Japan was dissatisfied by territorial gains in the Treaty of Versailles
• The Great Depression crashed Japanese exports - notably rice and silk, which was worth ⅓ of what it had been sold for in the 1920s
• Manchuria is rich in natural resources such as coal and iron
• Japan looked up to the empires of colonial powers and has had a military presence in Manchuria since 1904