The Failure of the League of Nations essays

The Failure of the League of Nations essays In the beginning of the 1930's, there was a world-wide economic depression. This lead to the creation of expansive policies of strong countries, such as Japan and Italy, in order to overcome the depression by building strong empires. The League of Nations dependent on the obedience of the Covenant by its members in order to succeed. However, in 1930's the League failed in stopping dictators deliberately breaking the Covenant. Already in 1931, Japan controlled most of the economy in Manchuria, part of China. It owned the most important assets in Manchuria, such as the Manchurian Railway. As the world-wide depression hit Japan hardly, the Japanese saw the invasion as the only way how to get out of depression. During the night of 28th September, an explosion of the Manchurian Railway, gave the Japanese an excuse to occupy the city of Shenyang. Instantly, China asked for the help of the League of Nations. After having a close look at the case, the League ordered the Japanese troops to leave Manchuria. The Japanese government agreed with the League's decision. However, the Japanese troops were already settled in Manchuria and refused to withdraw. The government no longer had control over its army and the army continued to advance in Manchuria. This event was a major blow to the League. The League was meant to keep peace by collective security, however, the Japanese refused to accept the terms of the League. Thus, this meant that if persuasion did not work then the League had to use economical sanctions. However, personal interest played a major role in the failure of applying economical sanctions on Japan. Both Britain and France, the main leaders of the League, were also recovering from the Great Depression and they did not want to risk losing trade with Japan, as it was vital for their economy. It soon became clear that economical sanctions could not work. Therefore, the League was left with their last resource&qu...