The League of Nations

The League of Nations was a international organisation devised by President Wilson. Wilson wished to have an organisation which would act as some form of global parliament. The idea would be that countries would send representatives and they would debate and discuss, before coming to an agreement. However, Wilson’s view was contested by Britain and France.

Britain wanted the League to only work in global emergencies, acting as a crisis management organisation. France on the other hand wanted the League to be a strong international organisation, complete with their own army. Wilson’s view of the League was the one which won out and became a personal project for him.

Wilson’s view was that all nations would be members of the league and that all countries who were members would be committed to disarmament. If there was a situation whereby countries disagreed, they would appeal to the League of Nations who would resolve it. Countries were to respect the decisions made by League. Despite the commitment to disarm, countries should come to each others aid if a country was ever invaded by another. Should a country break these agreements then the other members would stop trading and if necessary use military force to stop any further military action.

The idea of a League was one which was very popular. The idea of a global community where disputes could be solved and backed up by the threat of military force from the USA was appealing to many members.