2K International Relations and Global Conflict, c1890–1941 Part 4 Depth Study: History AQA A level Revision.

The collapse of the autocratic empires: Russia, Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire.

The autocratic empires in Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary fell apart during and after the First World War (1914-1918). The Ottoman Empire officially disintegrated in 1922. All these countries faced opposition groups in their countries that were formed due to economic, political, and social conflicts and shortages.

Russia.

A wave of rebellions swept Russia and strikes at the beginning of the 20th century. Poverty, harsh working conditions, rural backwardness, and the absolutist rule of Tsar Nicholas II Romanov (1868-1918) led hundreds of thousands of workers to revolt.

The November Revolution of 1917 was effective because the Bolsheviks, who represented the opposition in Russia, took power and established a communist regime. After Vladimir Ilyich Lenin seized power in a coup in November 1917, the Bolsheviks took over. The Provisional Government led by Alexander Kerensky was abolished, Tsar Nikolai Romanov was killed, and Vladimir Ilyich Lenin established communism.

Germany.

In Germany, after the First World War in 1918, the German Revolution began. The German Revolution was a civil conflict in the German Empire that began in November 1918 and ended in August 1919.

The revolution began for various reasons, including the economic and psychological effects of World War I on the German people, Germany's defeat by the Allies, and rising social tensions between the general public and the aristocratic and bourgeois elite. The German Revolution replaced Germany's federal constitutional monarchy with a democratic parliamentary republic, subsequently known as the Weimar Republic.

Ottoman Empire.

The Ottoman Empire began to lose its political and economic power in the 19th century. Still, during the Balkan Wars between 1912 and 1913, the Ottomans lost all their territories in Eastern Europe, which preceded their collapse in November 1922.

The result of the revolution in the Ottoman Empire was that Emperor Mehmed VI left Istanbul, the Ottoman Empire fell apart, and Ataturk, who led the opposition, formed the Republic of Turkey.

The collapse of the autocratic empires: nationalist ambitions and the impact on international relations and peace-making.

After the First World War, which had catastrophic economic and social consequences, nations wanted such a conflict to never happen again. All the leaders who influenced the beginning of the First World War were replaced, and the need arose to establish permanent peace in the world.

Nations wanted to avoid conflicts, so they formed alliances. One such alliance was the League of Nations.

Peace-making, 1919–1923: the roles and aims of Clemenceau, Wilson and Lloyd George.

David Lloyd George was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. Woodrow Wilson was the President of America from 1913 to 1921. Georges Clemenceau was the Prime Minister of France from 1917 to 1920. The three of them, together with Itorio Emanuele Orlando from Italy, met at the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919. They negotiated a peace agreement and punished Germany.

British and French leaders wanted to blame Germany for the war and create a peace that would ensure Germany's inability to go to war again. On the other hand, President Wilson presented a 14-point plan for how the world should look and a proposal for an international organization, the League of Nations. However, he did not find the support of Congress.

Peace-making, 1919–1923: the Treaty of Versailles.

After World War I, Germany concluded a treaty with the Allies in the Palace of Versailles near Paris, France, the so-called Treaty of Versailles on June 28, 1919.

America, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy held Germany and its allies fully responsible for the outbreak of the First World War. Accordingly, the Treaty of Versailles obliged Germany to pay reparations, which had serious economic consequences for the Germans. Germany had no money to return because, with this treaty, it lost its colonies in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific and was forced to cede about 10% of its territory to foreign countries, which significantly damaged economic stability in Germany.

Peace-making, 1919–1923: the East and Southern European settlements and the settlement with Turkey.

In one of the cards above, we stated that the Ottoman Empire fell apart in 1922. However, what is important is that after the First World War, the territory of the Ottoman Empire, which was an ally of Germany and Austria-Hungary during the First World War, was divided among the allies.

The division of the Ottoman Empire in 1919 led to the dominance of Western powers such as Britain and France in the Middle East. This contributed to the union of nationalist and opposition groups in the Ottoman Empire and the creation of the Republic of Turkey.

League of Nations.

American President Woodrow Wilson inspired the creation of an international organisation called the League of Nations. The League of Nations was founded in 1919 after the Paris Peace Conference.

The purpose of the League of Nations was to serve as a peacekeeper between warring nations worldwide, thereby preventing the escalation of international conflicts. Its goals were also to promote disarmament and international cooperation and improve global well-being and security.

Challenges to the peace settlement: the consequences of the USA’s return to isolationism and the League of Nations.

The League of Nations was founded in 1919, but Congress and the American public did not support the idea of the United States joining. After the First World War, the United States pursued a policy of isolationism and focused on solving internal problems.

During the 1920s, American presidents promoted a policy of isolationism, neutrality, and self-sufficiency. This was a good thing because America developed and experienced economic growth and prosperity. The United States encouraged the establishment of private companies and increased taxes on the import of foreign goods. However, in 1929, America entered the greatest economic crisis known as the Great Depression.

Challenges to the peace settlement: the responses to the post-war settlement in France and Britain.

Our task is to focus on the period between 1917 and 1923. Challenges to the Treaty of Versailles existed no matter how ideal it seemed. Western European countries acquired new territories and new difficulties within their borders, where nationalistic and anti-war sentiments arose among their population and in the countries they controlled.

For example, the international community gave Britain the task of establishing a "national home" for the Jews in Palestine after the First World War by adopting the Balfour Declaration in 1917. The Jews considered Jerusalem, which is located in Palestine, to be their ancestral home, because of their religion, while the Palestinians also claimed to that part of the territory. This caused numerous conflicts.

When did Ireland obtain independence from Britain?

Ireland did not obtain independence until the Irish War of Independence, which lasted from 1919 to 1921. Following the conflict, Ireland was partitioned into independent Southern Ireland and Northern Ireland, which remained under British control.

Challenges to the peace settlement: the responses to the post-war settlement in Germany.

The Treaty of Versailles and the establishment of the Weimar Republic in Germany caused economic damage to Germany. Germany was economically unstable and embarrassed. Therefore, opposition parties began to form in Germany, and one of them was the Nazi Party, which Adolf Hitler previously led.

The new German constitution, also known as the Weimar Constitution, was adopted in 1919 after the monarchy was abolished. The Republic of Bavaria faced many challenges, among which we can count economic difficulties, the growth of oppositional and radical movements, hyperinflation, etc. Bad relations with foreign powers brought into question Germany's position with world powers.

The state of international relations by 1923: the position of the USA and Russia in world affairs.

Until 1923, the position of the United States of America and Russia in world affairs was great. Russia, which actually transformed into the Soviet Union in 1922, is becoming one of the dominant world powers that tends to industrialise and modernise. The United States of America has certainly always had a great influence, the only thing is that the policy of isolation that they led prevented them from meddling in international politics.

However, we cannot dispute their influence and power. For example, President Harding invited delegates from Europe and Japan, who agreed to limit the production of warships, not attack each other, and respect China's independence.

The state of international relations by 1923: continuing border disputes.

Conflict over border disputes existed even before the start of the First World War and also after 1923. However, our task is to focus on the period up to 1923. We will remind you of the Nine-Power Pact signed in 1922 by the United States, Britain, France, and Japan not to seek further expansion of the Pacific or an increase in naval power in the region.

The nations also pledged to respect the Pacific territories of other pact signers. The signatories committed to consult in the event of a disagreement over territorial possessions.

The state of international relations by 1923: the occupation of the Ruhr and its consequences.

The German occupation of the Ruhr took place in 1923 after French Prime Minister Raymond Poincaré decided to occupy the Ruhr so that France could recover its debts from Germany. Germany was late in paying the reparations it was forced to pay after the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919.

German Chancellor Stresemann (1923-1929) is responsible for suppressing the uprising in the Ruhr. His goal was to free the German territories from French and Belgian occupation, to restore the power of Germany as it had before the First World War in the world, and to establish economic stability. The occupation of the Ruhr ended in 1925 after the French accepted the Dawes Plan.

Dawes andand Young Plans and foreign loans.

The Dawes and Young Plans allowed the Weimar Republic to pay back reparations and enjoy economic growth. The American government agreed to help Germany pay reparations, thanks to a plan by the Czech banker Charles G. Dawes and Owen Young, CEO of General Electric and a member of the Dawes Committee

Germany was unable to pay the reparations, which led to an even bigger problem. The European powers also stagnated because they needed the money they expected Germany to pay. American loans helped Germany get out of the crisis and encouraged industrial, cultural, and scientific development. The period from 1924 to 1929 became known as the "golden age" of the Weimar Republic.