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Paris Peace Treaties
In 1919, Woodrow Wilson, David Lloyd George, and George Clemenceau all created the Paris Peace Treaties. They were responsible for creating the treaties dealing with the defeated powers: Germany, Bulgaria, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey; and creating the successor states. Despite Woodrow Wilson's part in these, the US congress refused to ratify the treaties and came up with their own treaties with the nations. This is important because the Treaty of Versailles led to long term German resentment. -
Polish-Lithuanian quarrel over Vilna
In 1920, Poland invaded Vilna, Lithuania's capital. Lithuania appealed to the League, who ordered Poland to withdraw. Poland initially agreed, but later decided to annex Vilna and its surrounding area. The League was unable to do anything due to its anonymous rule, as Britain and France both supported Poland's claim to Vilna. This showed one of the League's major weaknesses: the anonymous rule. -
Aaland islands dispute
There Aaland islands were a group of Finnish island with a main ly Swedish population. The Swedish population wanted to become apart of Sweden, who supported this, but Finland disagreed. The League was summoned and said that the islands would remain Finnish but protections would be put in place for the Swedish population. While both sides didn't like it, they both agreed. This shows that the League was capable of settling disputes in the 1920s. -
Genoa Conference
In 1922, 30 European countries all joined in Genoa to discuss a number of things, including repairing Europe's economy. When it became clear that France would not compromise, Germany left the conference. Desperate for an ally, the USSR also left, and formed the Treaty of Rapallo with Germany, which massively increased tensions between Germany and France. This shows the European powers refusing to compromise and tensions increasing between Germany and France. -
Ruhr crisis
In 1923, angered by the failure of reparation payments, France and Belgium occupied the Ruhr, an industrial area in Germany. Britain disapprove, as they saw this as extreme and counterproductive. The League couldn't do anything due to their anonymous rule, as France and Belgium ruled against League intervention. This shows a massive increase in tensions between Britain and France and clearly shows one of the League's weaknesses. -
Dawes Plan
In 1924, due to German hyperinflation ruining Europe's economy, Britain, France, Germany, and the US all met and agreed on the Dawes Plan. In it, Germany received a sizable loan from the US. Along with this, the annual amount of reparations Germany had to pay was lowered. This shows cooperation between the European powers and shows France beginning to compromise. -
Locarno Treaties
In 1925, the European powers all met in Switzerland at what became know as the Locarno Conference. In this, the European borders that were settled at the Paris Peace Conference were confirmed. Along with this, France gained a British and Italian guarantee of support in the event of a German invasion. This shows cooperation between the major European powers and France beginning to compromise -
Germany joins the League of Nations
In 1926, following the Locarno Treaties, Germany was finally permitted to join the League. They were granted a permanent seat on the council. The Locarno treaties had eased French fears of a Germany invasion, which made them finally support Germany joining the League. This shows cooperation between the powers and France compromising over Germany. -
Kellogg-Briand Pact
In 1928, over 60 nations signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact. In it all nations agreed to outlaw war and settle disputes with more peaceful methods. However, this failed due to there being no way to enforce it. It showed nations cooperating and France agreeing to compromise. -
Young Plan
In 1929, Britain, France, Germany, and the US revisited the Dawes Plan and created the Young Plan. The Young Plan continued the US giving Germany loans and lowered Germany's total reparation amount. However, it failed due to the effects of the depression, which caused the US to stop giving loans to Germany which caused Germany's economy to collapse again. This shows cooperation between nations and the final stage of French cooperation.