Roads to War

Roads to War: The Origins of the Second World War 1929-1941
      An Uneasy Peace 1929-35         The “New Era”: Hopes for Peace in 1929         Locarno and the New Era – with the increased tension over the       French/Belgian invasion of the Ruhr Valley, the European       statesmen met in Locarno, Switzerland and reached a series       of agreements (1925). France, Germany, and Belgium agreed       to respect each other’s borders and Britain and Italy agreed       to enforce the terms of the agreement. This relieved France       and Belgium’s concern over another German invasion (as in       WW I) and Germany’s concern of a French/Belgian invasion       (Ruhr). In effect, Locarno removed many of the suspicions       between Germany and France.         Friendship between Nations – By 1929, the world was largely       at peace. The Kellogg-Briand Pact was signed by 65 nations       and it provided that nations would not use war as a method to       resolve differences. The Eastern Pact amongst Russia and       six of its neighbors also agreed not to use war as a means of       settling disputes.         The League of Nations – 10thanniversary in 1929. Signatories       agreed not to go to war with any member of the League, and if       a member was attacked, the other members would join forces       to defend it= “collective security.” The League had only       three options to keep peace amongst nations: bring the matter       to the Permanent Court of International Justice, economic       sanctions – refuse to trade with the attacker to bring on economic       ruin, and military sanctions (having the members provide       forces and create a League army). The league was usually able       to resolve issues short of sanctions. The League also had       the Disarmament Commission which sought to persuade nations       to reduce their weapon supplies and rely, instead, on collective       security.         The Limitation of the League – not every nation belonged (US       – isolationist...