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Russian Revolution
Due to rising political tension, the Russian Monarchy was abolished, and the members of parliament set up the Provisional Government. While the Bolsheviks initially tolerated the Government, and a period of dual power started. The Soviets had the support of most of lower-class Russia. Much tension ad infighting followed. While the Government called to continue their aid of the Allies in the Great War, Lenin wanted to end participation immediately. In October 1917, the Bolsheviks revolted. -
The October Revolution
Lenin led the Bolsheviks to overthrow the Government, set up after the fall of the Tsarist Authority. When Tsar Nicholas II abdicated, his younger brother refused to assume his position, and instead led the creation of the Provisional Government. The capture of Petrograd by Lenin was not entirely successful though. The Revolution was not officially recognised, so the fighting continued, and only in 1923 was the USSR officially recognised, although Lenin's control of Russia was already strong. -
The US's influence on international Relations
Despite Wilson's aims, the US never joined the League. Their absence from European involvement contributed to uncertainty in Europe. France, sharing a border with Germany, still feared the threat of invasion. She thought she could rely on the US, but due to the Yanks' absence, she was resolved to be harder on Germany to remove that threat. Britain, while also keeping in mind the German threat, was keen to improve relations with her long-time partner Germany, and to achieve peace in Europe. -
Foundation of the League of Nations
After the Armistice is signed, American president Thomas Woodrow Wilson's aim of having a global peace organisation of nations was achieved, but the US, Germany, and Russia were excluded.The League made it its aim to restore Europe. They experienced a number of successes, but also many failures, such as the Manchurian Crisis. -
The Problem with the Successor States: Yugoslavia
As a result of the Paris Peace Conference, Yugoslavia became home to peoples of many different nationalities and ethnicities, which only served to create political unrest. Instead of removing tension, the successor states mostly experienced more tension. Their peoples were now in closer quarters with those of different ideologies and backgrounds. In 1929, King Alexander I banned all political parties, and declared himself dictator. Yugoslavia soon became involved in several border disputes. -
The Problem With the Successor States: Hungary and Czechoslovakia
Hungary lost 2/3 of her territory through the Treaty of Trianon. Much of her industrial land was ceded to new successor states. Hungary herself was technically a successor state itself, as it came from the break-up of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Czechoslovakia got off quite well after the PPC, but faced problems when the Sudetenland was given to her from Germany. There was obviously a German minority in Czechoslovakia which caused some unrest. -
The Problem with the Successor States: Poland
One of Wilson's Fourteen Points was that every nation should have access to the sea, and Poland was given this through the Polish Corridor. This caused problems with the Germans, who were now separated from East Prussia. Poland's population was vastly diverse, with a small percentage being actually Polish. This caused weakness and instability in the government. In 1926 Jósef Piłsudski led a coup, becaming dictator, and several border disputes arose between Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Russia. -
The Problem With the 'Successor States': Austria
Austria returned from the PPC with serious concerns. The Treaty of Saint Germain meant that much of Austria's land was given to Poland and Czechoslovakia. Her access to the sea was removed, as her southern territories were ceded to other Successor States. And, with Anschluss forbidden, Austria was economically landlocked. Inflation ran rampant through the country. To Austria, union with Germany was the solution, but of course this was denied her through the TOV and TOSG. -
Economic repercussions of the PPC: Successor States
The successor states of the Paris Peace Conference all faced serious economic problems. Austria and Hungary lost access to the sea. Bulgaria lost her access to the Aegean Sea. She could still reach open waters, but only by navigating the canals and rivers of the Black Sea. Many of the successor states set up trade barriers to protect their industries, which also added to economic desperation. All in all, Wilson (Moron) only wreaked havoc with his plan for successor states. -
Anglo-Soviet Trade Agreement
After the Versailles Settlement, Britain was eager to improve cooperation in Europe. Lenin had offered trade agreements to many nations, but the British were the first to accept. Lloyd George, at the second stage of negotiations, put forward these proposals:
I. An Armistice to end hostile propaganda.
II. The exchange of war prisoners.
III. Mutual recognition of outstanding debts for goods and services. IV. Exchange of trade missions. The USSR accepted these terms in principle. (= -
The Washington Naval Conference
This conference was called for by Britain and the US to protect their navies and to limit naval rearmament. They were concerned by Japan's rising expansion in Asian territories, and the US wanted the Pacific to be protected from potential Japanese threats. Other naval powerhouses were present, such as Portugal (= The "5;5;3 Ratio" was established, which meant that Japan's Navy would be 3 fifths of the size of her British and American counterparts. -
The Genoa Conference
The Genoa Conference was called to address reparations and the European economy. Germany went seeking an improvement on the reparations fee of 6 Billion Pounds, but was disappointed, as France refused to compromise. Russia, too, after helping to repress the German war effort, and going through a revolution, sought financial aid, but too were disappointed. Fear of communism came in the way. This led to Germany and Russia signing the Treaty of Rapallo. The US was not present at the Conference. -
The Treaty Of Rapallo
Germany and Russia were disappointed by the Genoa Conference. Both sought economic aid, but none was given due to France's refusal to compromise on the reparations terms of the War Treaties. The two nations decided to help each other in lieu of the Conference. All terms of Brest-Litovsk were renounced, and secret military agreements were made. Germany would gain access to Russia, while the Russians would benefit from German military expertise. This saw an improvement in Russo-German relations. -
The Corfu Incident
When a border dispute between Albania and Greece arose, the League dispatched a commission of Enrico Tellini and his associates, all of whom were murdered. Benito Mussolini used this as sign of Greek aggression, and invaded the Greek Island of Corfu, which lay east of Italy, and west of Greece. The League asked Italy to retreat, but she refused. Instead, the Council of Ambassadors asked for an Italian retreat, provided that reparations of 50 million Lira was paid by Greece. Italy accepted this. -
The Corfu Incident - Reasons
There are several signs which suggest that Mussolini used the murder of Tellini to further his aim of eastward expansion. Although laden with countless ports, trade with inland Europe was not easy, and of course Italy desired to expand in the east, as expansion in the west was impossible due to the British and French threat. The Corfu Incident helped to show to Mussolini the weakness of the League, as his future plans strongly depended on the League's resolve, such as the takeover of Abyssinia. -
The Dawes Plan
The Dawes Plan was put forward by Charles Dawes and his company. The proposal was to loan $800M to Germany, who needed funds desperately to slow the hyperinflation brought by the Occupation of the Ruhr. The problem was that Germany used the funds to pay reparations to France and Britain, who in turn, used it to pay of their war debt to the US, and so the cycle was created. The loans depreciated in value as they were passed around, and it contributed to the Wall Street Crash in 1929. -
The Locarno Pact
The Locarno Pact was a conference which led to Germany joining the League. It started what is known as the Spirit Of Locarno, which marked a belief that Europe was recovering from the devastating horror of WWI. With it came several agreements of mutual guarantees. Britain and Italy agreed to assist if Germany invaded France, and vice-versa. Although this could be seen merely a guaranteee without genuine concern, it seems more likely that this was a sign of remaining distrust between the two. -
The Kellogg-Briand Pact.
This pact was considered as a continuation of the "Spirit Of Locarno", a hope that Europe was finally recovering from the War. However, it was almost useless. The aim of the Pact was to renounce war as a means of resolving problems, and to resort solely to diplomatic means. Signed by the American Frank B. Kellogg, the Pact was a sign of the US's move toward being more Internationalist. The other signee was French politician Aristide Briand, who had been an important figure in France for years. -
The Litvinov Protocol
Named after Diplomat Maxim Litvinov, the Litvinov Protocol led to the USSR signing the Kellogg-Briand Pact (see 1928)
While the USSR was sceptical of the effectiveness of the Pact, she was eager to made a diplomatic move to improve relations. At the time, the USSR was more willing to see in Europe. She was still mostly untrusted by the western powers in Europe, and even feared an anti-communist movement, so for her, having assurance, though weak, that war would be renounced, would help her. -
The Young Plan
By 1928, it was felt that an update for the Dawes Plan was necessary. Owen G. Young, an American banker who worked with Dawes, proposed the Plan, which sought lower German reparations. At this stage, Germany had joined the League. The plan faced British opposition, but was only put into effect in 1930 due to the Great Depression. It didn't prove to be very useful, but it marked US involvement in Europe. The fee was to be brought from 6 Billion Pounds to 2 Billion, as suggested by John M. Keynes. -
London Naval Conference (LNC)
The LNC was called to update the Washington Naval Conference of 1921, in an effort to avoid a Naval Arms Race, a factor in the start of the First World War. Not much was changed, but some clarification was given on submarine tonnage. At Washington, limits were put on any nations' number of vessels, but maximum tonnage was unclear. At the LNC, a maximum tonnage of 2800 per submarine was decided. 3 such vessels were allowed for each nation, save France, who received just 1. -
The Invasion of Manchuria
The Invasion of Manchuria was an attempt by Japan to seize land in the North east of China to relieve her starving population, among other reasons. Some consider the Manchurian Crisis to be the actual start of the Second World War. For more in-depth information, see 'The Manchurian Crisis' Timeline. https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/2399702 -
Hoare-Laval Pact
Britain and France, the main opposition to those who challenged the League, wanted Mussolini to stop his invasion of Abyssinia. There was fear that Mussolini's movement would encourage Hitler to follow suit. They were desperate to stop Italy, and came up with the Hoare-Laval Pact. Samuel Hoare and Pierre Laval secretly agreed that much of Abyssinia should be ceded to Italy to stop the fighting, and the rest to with be transferred to them, or to be made independent.
The Pact met much resentment. -
The Stresa Front
In response to Hitler's announcement that German reparations were underway, Britain, France, and Italy signed the Stresa Front; an agreement of mutual guarantee. The 1934 assassination of the Austrian Chancellor showed Mussolini that a potential German threat might be present, and Hitler's announcement developed this fear. In line with his aim of Italy's restoration, Mussolini couldn't afford a setback by facing a German attack,and so he signed the Stresa Front with Britain and France. -
The Abyssinian Crisis
In 1935, Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini made an attempt to invade Abyssinia (Modern-day Ethiopia) as he felt Italy had an historic claim to it. For more in-depth information, see 'The Abyssinian Crisis' Timeline. https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/2399702 -
The Rome-Berlin Axis
A year after Italy's invasion of Abyssinia, a pact was signed between Germany and Italy. This was essentially a precursor to the Pact of Steel (see 1939). This was the first major link of two of Europe's main Nationalist dictators, being Hitler and Mussolini. Relations with the Nationalist powers became stronger soon after when the Spanish Civil War, in which Italy and Germany aided the Spanish revolt against the Republican government (Super dope BTW) -
The Munich Agreement
The Munich Agreement of 1938 was a major instance of appeasement, by which the Sudetenland -which had been given to Czechoslovakia through the Treaty of Versailles- was ceded to Germany. Fearing Hitler's power, Britain, France, Belgium and Italy allowed Hitler to take the Sudetenland. They feared that if Hitler were defied, he would instead look to the west for expansion. This was a major event leading up to the Second World War, and was tied to Germany's invasion of Poland in 1939. -
The Munich Conference: Chamberlain's reasoning
Chamberlain privately met twice with Hitler to find a solution to German desire for the Sudetenland. Hitler insisted that something must be done immediately as 3 million German Sudetens were allegedly being persecuted. Chamberlain got the impression that Hitler would be satisfied with the Sudetenland. There was also pressure from the British people to stop a war, even if it meant sacrificing Prague to Germany, as they wanted to preserve London. -
The Pact of Steel
On the 22nd of May 1939, Italy and Germany signed 'The Pact of Steel' which included many political, economic, and military alliances. See the Wikipedia page for the Clauses of the agreement.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pact_of_Steel