Organisation of the League of Nations

What were the aims of the League of Nations?

The League had four main aims:

1. Stop Aggression

2. Improve living and working conditions

3. Disarmament

4. Enforce the Treaty of Versailles

How was the League of Nations organised?

The League had eight important organisations/commissions/groups:

1. Mandates Commission- made up of teams of expert advisors who report on how people in mandates are being treated and ensure that Britain and France act in the people's interests.

2. Refugees Committee- assisted displaced persons and protected their rights.

3. Slavery Commission- abolish slavery and help slaves and workers who are treated like slaves.

4. Court of International Justice- made up of judges from member countries who settle disputes between countries peacefully, and if asked, decide on border disputes. However, they had no way of ensuring that countries followed their rulings.

5. Health Committee- they brought experts together to collect health statistics, spread new ideas and deal with dangerous diseases and educate people on health and sanitation.

6. International Labour Organisation- worked to improve the conditions of working people by speaking to employers, governments and worker's representatives.

7. The Council- consisted of the permanent members; the UK, France, Italy and Japan who had the power of Veto and temporary members who were elected by the assembly for 3 year periods. They met about five times each year or in an emergency with the aim of resolving issues peacefully.

8. The Assembly- representatives of each country met to recommend actions for the council to take, such as admitting new members or agreeing on the budget.

Important Note:

The League of Nations had an agreement under Article X of the League's covenant about collective security. This meant that by acting together and condemning aggression and defending the threatened country, war would be less likely.

Some ways this was done was by:

• Moral condemnation- publicly criticising the actions of the country which was behaving aggressively towards another country.

• Economic sanctions- members agreeing to stop trading with a country so that its economy suffers.

What were the weaknesses of the League of Nations?

1. The USA never joined the League. This was a weakness because they were the world's greatest economic and military force, so economic sanctions and the threat of military force would not work.

2. Britain and France, who dominated the League's council, often disagreed with each other. This was a weakness as they often acted in their own interests rather than working together. 

3. The League's Assembly only met once a year and the decisions had to be unanimous, so decisions were made too slowly and it was often difficult to get all members to agree.

4. The League had to uphold the Treaty of Versailles, but in the 1920s and 30s, many countries (including Britain) believed that the terms of the Treaty were too harsh.

5. The League lacked the authority to speak to the whole world as important countries like the USA, the USSR and Germany were not members, so economic sanctions would not work if these non-members continued to trade with the League's target.

6. The League did not have an army of its own, so there was no way of enforcing its decisions through military force. It had to rely on other countries to provide them with soldiers, but many were reluctant to get involved in the aftermath of the Great War.

7. The permanent members of the League had the power of Veto, and they could use this to stop the League from taking action against the aggressor if it was in their interest to do so.