International relations: the changing international order 1918-75

ToV - War guilt

Germany had to accept blame for starting the war.

ToV - Reparations

Germany had to pay the allies £6.6 billion for war damage.

ToV - Land

Germany lost land to neighbouring countries.
It lost 10% of its land and 12% of its population.
Its overseas empire became controlled by the League of Nations.

ToV - Armed forces

Army limited to 100,000 men - only volunteers.
No armoured vehicles, submarines, or aircraft.
Navy could only have 6 battleships.
The Rhineland was demilitarised.

ToV - League of Nations

The League of Nations was set up as an 'international police force'.
Germany was not allowed to join until it had proved its peaceful intentions.

ToV - Clemenceau's reaction

The Treaty is not doing enough.
France is still vulnerable.
Germany still has its military.

ToV - Wilson's reaction

The Treaty is too harsh.
It is not designed for peace.
There is no 'self-determination'.

ToV - Lloyd George's reaction

None of the old problems solved.
Fear for the future.

Treaty of St. Germain 1919 (Austria)

Restrict Austria's army to 30,000.
Forbids Anschluss with Germany.
Breaks up Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Treaty of Neuilly 1919 (Bulgaria)

Bulgaria lost land to Greece, Romania, and Yugoslavia.
Army limited to 20,000.
Has to pay £10 million in reparations.

Treaty of Trianon 1920 (Hungary)

Hungary lost land to Romania, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.
It was supposed to pay reparations but its economy was so weak that it never did.

Treaty of Sèvres 1920 (Turkey)

Turkey lost land to Italy and Greece.
Armed forces severely limited.
Lost lots of its empire to France and Britain (mostly).

Structure of the League of Nations

Secretariat - ran the League
The Council - met 5 times a year or when there was an emergency
The Assembly - voted on issues such as the budget. Decisions had to be unanimous
Court of International Justice - settled disputes between countries
Commissions - tackled international problems

Aims of the League of Nations

1. Discouraging aggression

2. Co-operation between countries

3. Improve living and working conditions

4. Disarmament

LoN actions - 400,000 people displaced because of WW1

Refugee Commission helped them return home

LoN actions - Poor working conditions, lack of workers' rights, especially for women and children

The International Labour Organisation campaigned for workers' rights

LoN actions - Lack of children's rights

Declaration of the Rights of the Child, still in force today

LoN actions - High mortality rates from leprosy and malaria

The Health Committee funded research into deadly diseases
Leprosy and malaria vaccines developed

LoN actions - 200,000 enslaved people in Sierra-Leone due to drug trafficking and slavery

The League fought successful campaigns, and freed all 200,000 people

LoN actions - The economies of Austria and Hungary collapsed in 1922-3

The Financial Committee came up with an economical plan to raise loans and help the economies recover

LoN actions - Finland and Sweden both claimed the Aaland Islands and threatened to go to war 1921

The League ruled that Finland should own the island

LoN actions - Poland took control of the Lithuanian capital, Vilna. Lithuania appealed to the League 1920-1929

The League protested to Poland, but Poland did not pull out. France and Britain did not act because Poland was a potential ally.

LoN actions - Germany and Poland both claimed Upper Silesia 1921

The League held a vote, and divided the region

LoN actions - Border dispute between Greece and Albania in Corfu. Italian general killed. 1923

Conference of Ambassadors ruled Greeks to pay Italy compensation. On 27th September, Mussolini withdrew from Corfu

LoN actions - Greek soldiers killed on the Bulgarian border, and Greek troops invaded

League of Nations told both sides to stand down

Washington Conference 1921

The USA, Japan, Britain, and France agreed to limit the size of their navies

Rapallo Treaty 1922

The USSR and Germany re-established diplomatic relations

Dawes Plan 1924

USA lent Germany money to avoid economic crisis.
These loans restored prosperity to the country and helped its economy.

Locarno Treaties 1925

Germany agreed to western borders as set out in the Treaty of Versailles.
Nothing was said about its eastern borders with Poland and Czechoslovakia.

Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928

Agreement between 65 nations not to use force to settle disputes.

Young Plan 1929

Reduced German reparations.

Disarmament Conference 1932

An international conference aiming to achieve worldwide disarmament. It was considered to be a failure because no country was serious about disarming.
However, it agreed to many things, such as:
- The prohibition of the bombing of civilians
- Limitation of the size of artillery
- Tonnage of tanks

Sanctions during Depression

Reduced inclination of League members to impose economic sanctions.
World markets were shrinking and all countries wanted to maintain their existing trade contacts.

US loans during Depression

Many US banks started to run out of money, calling in the loans they had given to states in Central Europe, including Poland and Czechoslovakia.

Nazis during Depression

Brought extremists to power in Germany, who were committed to destroying the Versailles settlement.
Before the Wall Street Crash the Nazis were a fringe party polling less than 3% of the vote.
As the recession deepened the Nazis picked up support.
The Depression added a new sense of crisis to German politics.
The Nazis won 107 seats in September 1930, becoming the second largest party in Germany.

Japan during Depression

The Japanese Silk trade collapsed.
The Depression encouraged militarism in Japan.
The Japanese army appreciated how Japan's survival depended on its overseas trade and, in 1931, decided to take the law into its own hands by invading the Chinese region of Manchuria.

US income during Depression

The national income of the USA fell by nearly a half between 1929 and 1932.
American factories, which had become so successful, suddenly fell silent.
Exports of cars fell from $541 million in 1929 to $76 million in 1932.
Farmers were also badly hit: wheat exports fell from $200 million to $5 million in 1932.

US politics during Depression

In 1932 F. D Roosevelt was elected President of the USA.

US policy became even more isolationist.

Aggression during Depression

Put pressure on countries to find new markets and sources of raw materials.
One way this could be done was through colonisation or annexation of new territories, but this was likely to involve war.

Britain economy during Depression

The value of the pound was reduced and no longer linked to the price of gold.

Britain politics during Depression

The crisis undermined the position of the government and led to a split in the Labour Party.
The Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, left the party and set up a coalition with the Conservatives.
The government, concerned that Britain could not defend the British Empire in Asia and stop the rise of German power in Europe at the same time, slashed defence spending and took a cautious approach to Germany.

Manchuria Crisis

The Great Depression destroyed Japan's economy and exports fell because of US/Chinese tariffs.
Nationalist military leaders pushed for expansion to gain resources. Japan became a military dictatorship.
Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931 after claiming the Chinese sabotaged the South Manchuria Railway.
Civilian politicians objected, but the army ignored them. China appealed to the League.
Lord Lytton's report (1933) condemned Japan, but Japan left the League and invaded more of China.
The League approved the report, but didn't do much: economic sanctions were ineffective without the USA.
Only the USA/USSR could stop, but they weren't members of the League
The League's failure (distance, China's instability) showed its weakness and encouraged future aggressors like Hitler and Mussolini.

Abyssinia Crisis

Italy is lacking resources because of the war, whilst Abyssinia has lots of resources. Mussolini dreams of an empire.
They try to invade Abyssinia the decade before, but don't succeed. They invade in 1935. Britain and France don't challenge Mussolini, because they want to keep Italy as allies against Germany.
They send an adviser who takes 8 months, who decides that neither side can be blamed, and suggests that Italy should be able to take some land from Abyssinia.
Mussolini continues to advance into Abyssinia. The League places sanctions on rubber and tin, but not oil. They still allow him to use the Suez canal.
The Hoare-Laval Pact (1935) was a secret agreement between the British and French foreign ministers to give most of Abyssinia to Italy, without consulting the League of Nations or Haile Selassie.
Italy take control of the whole of Abyssinia.

Germany leaving the League 1933

Hitler claimed that his country was not being treated equally.

Germany rearming from 1933

Hitler reduced unemployment by drafting unemployed workers into the army.
He began to stockpile weapons.

Remilitarisation of the Rhineland 1936

Hitler ordered troops into the Rhineland.
He claimed Germany was being 'encircled' by France and the USSR.
If the British and French had sent troops he would have been forced to withdraw, but they were too concerned with the Abyssinian crisis.
The League condemned Hitler's actions but no further action was taken.

German involvement in the Spanish Civil War 1936-9

A civil war broke out between the republicans and the nationalists in Spain.
Hitler and Mussolini helped Spanish nationalist leader Franco by supplying troops, aircrafts, and other equipment. German aircrafts bombed republican strongholds.
Britain and France refused to intervene in the civil war.
Hitler assumed Britain and France would take the same attitude to any war.
The USSR became suspicious of Britain and France because of their reluctance to oppose Hitler and Mussolini.

Anti-Comintern Pact and Axis Alliance 1936-7

Hitler and Mussolini were ready to use their armed forces. Japan was controlled by nationalist commanders.
Hitler and Mussolini saw that they had much in common with the military dictatorship in Japan.
In 1936, Germany and Japan signed the Anti-Comintern Pact to pledge their opposition to communism.
Italy signed it in 1937, forming the Axis alliance.

Appeasement - The Anschluss 1938

Hitler started calling on Austrian Nazis to campaign for the union, causing unrest.
He then threatened to send troops into Austria to 'restore order'.
The Austrian chancellor asked Britain and France to help Hitler back down, but they did nothing.
In March 1938, Hitler marched troops into Austria.
A plebiscite was organised; 99.75% of the population agreed to the Anschluss.
This was another success for Hitler:
He increased the German population
Added Austria's reserves of gold and iron ore to Germany's industry
Britain and France had done nothing to stop him

Appeasement - The Sudetenland and the Munich Agreement 1938

In May 1938, Hitler threatens to invade Czechoslovakia, who is ready to fight back.
September 1938
Hitler demands self-determination from Germans in the Sudetenland, and they start to rearm by themselves.
Chamberlain hears Hitler's demands and considers them reasonable - Hitler was only interested in parts of the Sudetenland, and only under a plebiscite.
France and Britain discuss Hitler's demands, and France agrees to them.
France and Britain talk to Czechoslovakia about their plans with Hitler. Czechoslovakia accepts the terms, to only part of the Sudetenland.
Hitler increases his demands, he wanted the whole of the Sudetenland.
On the 29th September Mussolini, Hitler, Chamberlain and Daladier make the Munich Agreement (give Hitler the Sudetenland). Czechoslovakia is not aware.
Chamberlain and Hitler make an agreement promising to never go to war with each other again.
In March 1939 Hitler tears up the Munich agreement and invades Czechoslovakia.

The end of Appeasement

If Hitler continued his expansionist plans, he would likely target Poland next.
Britain and France said they would declare war if he did this. This ended the policy of Appeasement.

The Nazi-Soviet Pact

The agreement between Hitler and Stalin to not attack each other, made on the 23rd August 1939.

WW2

On the 1st September 1939, Hitler invades Poland.
On the 3rd September, war is declared on Germany by Britain and France. They had pledged to come to Poland's aid in the event of an invasion.

Interpretations of Appeasement - Popular majority view

Huge support of Chamberlain, as he kept war at bay for as long as he could, giving peace a chance.

Developed by:

The memory of WW1, and support for going to war over Czechoslovakia was weak.
Shown by positive public reception on his return from Munich, thousands cheering him on. Also applause in Parliament.

Churchill, and David Low were the most prominent critics.

Interpretations of Appeasement - Popular and political view

Appeasement was a foolish, cowardly, and immoral policy that strengthened dictators and weakened Britain.

Developed by:

The outbreak of WW2, and shame about Munich.

Publication of Guilty Men (by Cato), which criticised the British leaders from 1931 onwards. This book helped Churchill defeat Halifax (his opponent), and he became the leader of Britain's war policy.

Interpretations of Appeasement - The orthodox view

Appeasement was a terrible misjudgement, even if based on good motives. Chamberlain should've tried to form a 'grand alliance' of Britain, France, the USA, and the USSR to stop the Axis.

Developed by:

The 'Churchill Factor', Churchill was well known for his self-promotion, and wanted to make sure his reputation did not suffer after losing the 1945 election

The Cold War, Churchill saw the USSR as a threat, and believed that the USA and its allies should always stand up to Stalin and not repeat past mistakes

Churchill published The Gathering Storm about his history of WW2, and it influenced lots of popular interpretations of this period.

John Charmley was the main critic.

Interpretations of Appeasement - Academic revisionist view

Churchill was in an impossible situation and did the best he could've.
Developed by:

A period of radical thinking during the 60s

The USA's dislike of Appeasement drawing them into the Vietnam War

New British sources from the time due to the Public Records Act (papers could be studied 30 years after their creation).

Associated with Donald Cameron Watt, Paul Kennedy, and David Dilks.
Academic counter-revisionists criticised this view.

Interpretations of Appeasement - Academic counter-revisionist view

Chamberlain's personality and assumptions meant he could not deal well with the situation, so he was at least partly responsible for it.

Developed by:

Historical debate, some historians did not agree with the revisionist view as it let Chamberlain off the hook

New Soviet sources, after the end of the Cold War archives from the USSR became available to historians, which had German documents that gave details of dealings between Hitler and Chamberlain.

Associated with Donald Cameron Watt, who changed his view.
Revisionist historians criticised this view as they questioned what alternatives were open to Chamberlain.

USSR in Eastern Europe - Banning other parties

Czechoslovakia 1948 - other parties were becoming threats, so they banned all other parties and made Czechoslovakia a communist, one-party state

USSR in Eastern Europe - Killing or imprisoning opponents

Bulgaria 1945 - the communist members of the coalition then executed leaders of other parties
Hungary 1947 - imprisoned opposition politicians and attacked Church leaders
Poland 1947 - forced non-communist leader into exile

USSR in Eastern Europe - Winning democratic elections

Czechoslovakia 1945 - a left-wing coalition won elections
Albania 1945 - communists gained power immediately after the war
Yugoslavia 1945 - Marshal Tito was elected prime minister
Romania 1945 - a communist was elected prime minister within a left-wing coalition
Bulgaria 1945 - a left-wing coalition won elections
Hungary 1947 - communists became the largest single party
Poland 1947 - communists became outright leaders

USSR in Eastern Europe - Using the Red Army

Eastern Germany was under Red Army control until the German Democratic Republic in 1949

USSR in Eastern Europe - Communist involvement in resistance movements

Albania (wartime), - communist and nationalist resistance movements had opposed the Italian and German occupation forces.
Romania 1947 - the communists abolished the monarchy

USSR in Eastern Europe - Citing agreements at Yalta

East Germany - the Allies gave the USSR control of the eastern sector of Germany

USSR in Eastern Europe - Cominform (Communist Information Bureau)

Set up by Stalin to control communist governments, they were forced to join.
Leaders of each communist party was regularly brought to Moscow to be briefed by Stalin and his ministers. This allowed him to keep a close eye on them.
If he noticed independent-minded leaders he replaced them with people who were completely loyal to him.
Both France and Italy had communist parties under Cominform.
Marshal Tito (Yugoslavia) was expelled from Cominform in 1948 as he was determined to apply communism in his own way.

Yalta Conference

Yalta, Ukraine - Feb 1945
Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill
Deciding what to do with Germany

Agreed

• Stalin to join war against Japan.
• Countries freed from German occupation would choose their governments in elections.
• Nazi war criminals would pay for their crimes.
• Germany's control would be divided between the USA, Soviet Union, Britain, and France.
• Eastern Europe would become a Soviet 'sphere of influence'.

Disagreed
Stalin wanted borders of both USSR and Poland to move westwards. Roosevelt and Churchill disagreed, and in return Stalin would not interfere in Britain trying to prevent Greece becoming communist.

Potsdam Conference

Potsdam, Berlin - Jul/Aug 1945
Stalin, Truman, Churchill/Attlee
To finalise the post-war settlement

Agreed

• Denazification of Germany, reforming education and justice.

• Demilitarisation of Germany.

• Division of Germany.

• Polish border on the Oder-Neisse line.

• Take reparations from their German zones for the West/USSR

Disagreed

• How far to punish Germany, Stalin wanted to cripple them, Truman did not want to repeat the mistakes of the Treaty of Versailles

• Stalin wanted reparations from Germany after 20 million Russians died in the war. Truman did not agree, Stalin was alarmed about why he would want to protect Germany.

• Truman became concerned about Soviet intentions after it was agreed that Stalin would control Eastern Europe.

Why did tension increase between Yalta and Potsdam?

Roosevelt died and was replaced by Truman. Truman was much more anti-communist than Roosevelt.
Just before the conference began, the US had successfully exploded an atomic bomb in the New Mexico desert.
There was little evidence at Potsdam that Stalin would allow free elections in Eastern Europe after Germany's defeat. The USSR's army (the Red Army) was in control of Poland, and the USSR was setting up a communist government.

Division of Germany

After WW2, Germany was divided into four zones (USSR, USA, France, Britain).
In 1946 the western zones were combined. This was known as West Germany by 1949.
The USSR then created East Germany, the GDR (German Democratic Republic).
Berlin was also divided into east and west so that the USSR could not seize control.

Truman Doctrine 1947-48

The USA would provide money, equipment, and advice to any country he considered to threatened by communism.
They did not send military as that could escalate to war.

Marshall Aid 1947

An American aid programme of $17 billion to help rebuild Europe after WW2.

Berlin Blockade 1948-49

June 1948 - May 1949
USSR blocked land and water routes into West Berlin, attempting to force the Western Allies to abandon the city.

Berlin Airlift

The Allies flew aircraft into West Berlin with supplies after the Blockade.
West Berlin received everything it needed in this way whilst the Blockade lasted.

NATO 1949

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation - April 1949
Western powers signed a treaty to work together.

Warsaw Pact 1955

USSR and communist states in eastern Europe formed an alliance to defend each other if any one of them was attacked.

Cold War conflicts - nuclear arms race

1949 - the USSR detonates its first atomic bomb
1952 - the USA detonates its first hydrogen bomb
1953 - the USSR detonates its first hydrogen bomb

Cold War conflicts - The Korean War

North Korea invaded South Korea with the support of the USSR and China.
The UN sent troops to protect South Korea.
They invaded North Korea and reached as far as the Chinese border.
China recaptured North Korea and advanced into South Korea.
The USA sent troops and pushed China back to the 38th parallel.

Cold War conflicts - Hungarian Revolution

In October 1956, a new Hungarian government announced plans to leave the Warsaw Pact.
The USSR rejected this and invaded Budapest, killing over 400 Hungarian soldiers and civilians.

Cold War conflicts - The Berlin Wall

On the 13th August 1962, the Berlin Wall is put up.
East German soldiers and workers put up a barbed-wire fence all along the border between East and West Berlin.
All crossing points were sealed apart from Checkpoint Charlie.
The USSR said it was put up to protect East Berlin (and East Germany) from US spies and agents, but really it was to stop people moving to West Berlin.

Cuban Missile Crisis - Khrushchev supports Castro

Castro feared a US invasion, so turned to the USSR for help.
Khrushchev and Castro agreed a $100 million package of economic aid.
Khrushchev also sent military equipment and technical advisers to Cuba.

Cuban Missile Crisis - Bay of Pigs invasion

April 1961 - Kennedy acts, he authorises a CIA-backed plan to help 1400 Cuban exiles to land in the Bay of Pigs in Cuba and overthrow him.
This was a disaster and strengthened Castro's hold on Cuba. This also justified Khrushchev's actions as Cuba seemingly needed protection from a US invasion.

Cuban Missile Crisis - Khrushchev arms Castro

In May 1962, the USSR publicly announces that it is supplying Cuba with arms.
By September 1962, Cuba had thousands of Soviet missiles, patrol boats, tanks, radar equipment, aircraft, and 5000 Soviet technicians to maintain the weapons.
On the 11th September 1962, Kennedy warned the USSR that he would take serious action if they supplied Cuba with nuclear weapons, but was assured that the USSR had no intentions of doing so.

Cuban Missile Crisis - the October Crisis

On the 14th October 1962, a US U-2 spy plane flew over Cuba, and took photos. It was clear that the images showed nuclear missile sites.
US spy planes also reported that 20 Soviet ships were on their way to Cuba carrying missiles.
Kennedy had four choices:

1. Ignore the missiles

2. Get the UN involved

3. Blockade Cuba

4. Attack
   He decided to Blockade Cuba

Cuban Missile Crisis - the blockade

22 October - Kennedy imposes a naval blockade around Cuba.
23 October - Kennedy receives a letter from Khrushchev saying that the Soviet ships will force their way through the blockade.
24 October - Despite this, the twenty ships approaching the blockade turn back.
25 October - US spy planes report increased building work at the missile launch sites on Cuba.
26 October - Kennedy receives a letter from Khrushchev promising to remove the launch sites if the USA agrees to lift the blockade and promises not to invade Cuba.
27 October - A second letter from Khrushchev says the launch sites will only be removed if the US removes its missiles in Turkey. Kennedy only answers the first letter while privately offering to remove the missiles in Turkey.
28 October - In a public message to Kennedy on Moscow radio, Khrushchev agrees to the removal of all missiles on Cuba.

Cuban Missile Crisis - impact on relations

A permanent 'hotline' telephone link was set up between the White House and the Kremlin.
In 1963, the signed a Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

Interpretations of Cold War - US orthodox view (1940s-1960s)

Blamed the USSR
Backed up by movies: The War of the Worlds, Invasion of the Body Snatches, Make Mine Freedom (US govt film), and other propaganda

Developed by:
Red Scare (1950s), Senator McCarthy claimed there were spies in the US govt and other institutions
Personal experience, many orthodox historians had been involved in the events they were talking about
Lack of sources, US ones were secret, no access to the USSR at all

Associated with Thomas Bailey, George Kennan, and Herbert Feis
William Appleman Williams and EH Carr criticised this view

Interpretations of Cold War - US revisionist view (1960s-1970s)

Blamed the USA
The USA provoked the war by the 'Open Door' policy
Orthodox view, as it had overstated the Soviet threat

Developed by:
Cuban revolution, during Cuba's communist takeover, the USA were aggressive and empire-building, but were also trying to stop Soviets from building their own empire.
Vietnam War, the USA had supported a corrupt regime in Vietnam
Challenges to status-quo, there were many new views on issues, encouraging new ways of thinking

Supported by William Appleman Williams, Joyce and Gabriel Kolko, and Thomas G Paterson
Criticised by Herbert Feis and traditionalists

Interpretations of Cold War - post-revisionist view (1970s-1989)

Caused by the USA and USSR's reactions to each other's actions, mistrust and misunderstandings
The Cold War was not inevitable

Developed by:
Historical debate, post-revisionists were challenging both orthodox and revisionist views for being too simplistic in blaming one side
Thawing of the Cold War, the US started a process of détente, they agreed the SALT in 1972, they also met to discuss human rights in Helsinki

Supported by John Lewis Gaddis
Criticised by Carolyn Eisenburg

Interpretations of Cold War - new Cold War Historians (1989 onwards)

Blamed USA and USSR

The end of the Cold War led to…
New Soviet sources, millions of new sources to consider
The Reagan factor, in the final years of the Cold War, Ronald Reagan had an aggressive policy towards the USSR, referring to it as the 'Evil Empire', influencing many orthodox historians

Criticised by Michael Cox and Caroline Kennedy-Pipe
Reagan was criticised by Revisionist historians