Evaluating the Success of the League of Nations

Evaluating the Success of the League of Nations

The twentieth century continued the traditional cycle that had emerged

after the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Periods of warfare were

followed by periods of idealism and of nations striving for world

unity with the goal of never allowing another war to happen. The

century had barely begun when war broke out in Europe. A series of

alliances and political assurances quickly thrust all the major

nations in Europe together in what became known as the Great War. From

1914 until the end of the war, in 1918, this was global conflict

unlike anything the world had ever seen. As a result the victorious

nations of the world collaborated together to arrange a post-war

system that would prevent another global conflict. Thus, the League of

Nations was born. Less than twenty years after itsintervention,

however, the world had once again descended into war - the League of

Nations, in the eyes of the world, had failed in its task. It has

become a matter of great debate as to whether the League actually

failed. But by Analysing the goals it set out to acomplish and the

issues it strove to solve we can get a much clearer idea of whether

the League really was a failure.

The First World War broke out in 1914 and it seemed that it had barely

begun and organisations had begun to plan the post war peace. For

example, the League to Enforce Peace set up by former president of the

United States, William Howard Taft. The League's principles were to

form a society of nations based on the principles of collective

security and enhanced international law. Then President Woodrow Wilson

although initially hesitant...

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...ing to surrender their ideas of sovereignty to another

organisation. The fact that the United Nations is still functioning

suggests that ideas of sovereignty are less important or that "Realism

has been understood with the intentional trigging of the veto power to

the permanent members". The United Nations is almost the League in

another form but it is deemed to be successful so far, however the U.N

has its own problems for it has picked up some of the League Of Nation

problems in a dictating country to big to be repremanded but instead

being allowed to dominate and do what ever they please The United

States Of America. The League, therefore, was successful in that it

created a legacy for the future! But will this legacy of The future

altogether be a success or just another wonderful idea thurst into the

sands of time?