The League of Nations was based on sound ideas.

How far do
you agree with this statement?

For

The creation of the League was an attempt to make sure nations

did not have to live through the horrors of world war again. It
encouraged governments to strive for world peace by urging them
to talk over their problems rather than going to war. The League
wanted countries to disarm so that they would not be tempted to
use military action to settle their differences.
The Leagues agencies were to raise peoples awareness on a
whole range of social issues.

Against

The League was too idealistic to believe that all countries would
sit around a table to solve their problems. Not all countries were
members and some left when problems arose. Countries were not
willing to disarm as this would give away their security.
The League had no standing army and this was unrealistic in its
belief that moral and economic sanctions would work in all cases
or that countries would give military support.
The League was trying to uphold the peace settlement even when
founder members thought some terms were too harsh and were
willing to make adjustments to the treaties or ignore parts.
All members were to have equal voting rights. All decisions in the
Assembly and the Council had to be unanimous. This was fine if
members agreed with each other, but not when they

What steps did the League of Nations take against Japan following the invasion of
Manchuria?

They used moral condemnation.

When China appealed to the League for help, it instructed Japanese forces to
withdraw.
The League decided to set up a Commission of Inquiry under Lord Lytton.
The Commission was sent to the area to gather information and report on what
happened. It
took nearly a year to do so.
When the Report was published in late 1932, it condemned Japans actions.
The members of the League accepted Lyttons conclusions and again instructed
the
Japanese to leave. The Japanese ignored the report and instruction, and left the
League.

The lack of an army was the main reason for the Leagues failure in Manchuria.
How
far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer.

For
The League had no armed forces of its own, relying on collective security. This
meant
inaction as members were not prepared to use force.
The weakness of the League was exposed as it did not have the power to
enforce a
Japanese withdrawal.
It would have been difficult for France and Britain to raise forces to travel to the
East to
impose the will of the League. They could easily lose military action.

Against
Japan ignored the Leagues instruction to withdraw. Japan was determined to
ignore the
League.
The League was very Eurocentric in its attitudes. Asia seemed very distant to
many
League members. It did not consider an Asian crisis as vital to the countries in
Europe.
The League was weakened by the USA not joining. If economic sanctions had
been
imposed, it is likely that they would have been ineffective as the USA could
continue to
trade with Japan.
The League was slow acting. This is highlighted by the length of time the Lytton

Commission took to report. By the time the report was published Japan had
completed
the invasion.

Hitlers desire for lebensraum was the most important reason for the
outbreak of war in 1939? How far do you agree with this statement?
Explain your answer. (JUST LEBRENSRAUM)

Lebensraum

His desire for lebensraum for German people threatened European

peace as he wanted to carve out an empire in eastern Europe.
He marched into Poland. Hitler did not believe they would go to war
over Poland.
The Nazi-Soviet Pact left Britain and France to fight Germany alone.

Why, by 1936, was Italy a threat to world peace?

In Italy economic problems encouraged Mussolini to try to build an overseas

empire to
distract peoples attention away from the difficulties the government faced. In
1935 he
invaded Abyssinia and refused to obey the League of Nations by withdrawing.
Italy was a leading member of the League. Mussolini challenged the authority of
the League.

Italy was, unlike Japan, on the Leagues doorstep and even had a border with
France. The
lack of decisive action by the League over Mussolini meant he became more
confident.
In 1936, Mussolini supported Franco in the Spanish Civil War. He sent arms and
troops to
fight the Spanish government. With the arrival of Hitlers troops and weapons in
Spain, the
three dictators increased tension in European affairs.
In 1936, Mussolini and Hitler cemented their friendship with the signing of the
Rome-Berlin
Axis. This was to bear fruit in the future over Munich and the War.

How far had Hitler achieved his foreign policy aims by the end of 1939?

Points
Hitler had overturned parts of the Treaty of Versailles.
He had gained some Lebensraum in the East.
He had remilitarised the Rhineland.
He had achieved Anschluss with Austria.
He had not destroyed communism in the Soviet Union.
He had not gained as much Lebensraum in Eastern Europe as he had hoped.

For
One of Hitlers aims was to overturn the Treaty of Versailles. In March 1933 he
announced that the German peacetime army was to be increased to 300,000.
This was in
direct defiance of the Treaty which had limited Germanys army to 100,000 men.
Two years
later he reintroduced conscription, again defying the treaty.

Against
Hitler wanted to gain Lebensraum in Eastern Europe. At the same time he
thought he
could defeat communism in the Soviet Union. By 1939 he had not achieved this.
In order to
take over Poland he had needed to sign the Nazi-Soviet Pact; he was still a long
way from
taking over the Soviet Union and destroying communism.

Why did the Soviet Union occupy Eastern Europe after the Second World War?

After the Second World War, Stalin wanted a line of states which he could
influence and
control from the Baltic to the Black Sea. This was the Iron Curtain referred to by
Churchill in
his speech of 1946 in Fulton.
Stalin wanted communist governments bordering the USSR. They would take
their orders
from Moscow and they were likely to be compliant.
Russia had been invaded twice during the twentieth century by Germany. Stalin
wanted to

ensure that the USSR would not be invaded again. He wanted a buffer zone of
friendly states
facing the West. These would act as an early warning system to the USSR.
Stalin wanted communism to spread. It was a rival to the democratic and
capitalist West
and, in particular, to the USA. After the War, Stalin had secured a huge
communist bloc.

How important was the involvement of the UNO in the Korean War? Explain your
answer.

Points
The UNO took firm action in the face of aggression.
Communism had been contained.
The UNO was unable to unite North and South Korea.
The UNO was unable to bring democracy to all of Korea.
Many felt that the UNO was being used by the USA.

For

The UNOs involvement in the Korean War was important because they had
taken firm
action in the face of aggression. This firm action meant that communism did not
take a hold
of South Korea. Without the UN action it is unlikely that South Korea would still
exist.

Against
The UNOs involvement was not very important. The UNOs policy was that
Korea
should become one country with free elections supervised by the UNO. This did
not happen
as Korea remained divided. The UNO also failed to bring democracy to Korea as
Kim ruled
the North as a dictator until his death in 1994.

The USA gained more than the USSR from the Cuban Missile
Crisis. How far do you
agree with this statement? Explain your answer.

USA

The USA gained much for its new President, Kennedy, with a
greatly improved reputation in the USA and the West. He had
stood up to Khrushchev and forced him to back down.
The USA had the nuclear weapons removed from their doorstep
and, therefore, removed the danger for nearly all US major cities
of a nuclear attack.

USSR

The USSR had left Cuba safe and Cuba became a useful base to
support communists in South America.
Khrushchev did get the USA to withdraw its nuclear missiles from
Turkey, although Khrushchev had to agree that this withdrawal
was to be kept secret so he was unable to use it for propaganda
purposes.

Both the USA and the USSR gained from the Crisis because the
world had been given a serious scare and both were anxious to
ensure that it did not happen again. It was agreed to set up a
hot line between Washington and Moscow to enable direct
communication to take place. In 1963 a Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
was signed.

The Cuban Missile Crisis was a success for the US policy of

containment. How far
do you agree with this statement?
Explain your answer.

Against

The US foreign policy of containment was not successful because

Cuba remained a
Communist state despite the removal of missiles, the Bay of Pigs
incident and the withdrawal
of trade.
Cuba considered itself a strong ally of the USSR and could depend
on it for protection and
considerable aid.
The price the USA had to pay for the removal of Soviet missiles
was the removal of US
missiles in Turkey, thus weakening US containment policy.
The failure of the US to remove Communism from its doorstep in
Cuba, meant that other
Communist groups were encouraged later in Central America,
such as Nicaragua and El
Salvador.

For

Kennedy could claim that he had stood up to Khrushchev and his

decisive action removed
the threat of a nuclear base in Cuba.
Kennedy had shown Khrushchev that he would not accept the
expansion of direct Soviet
military action and influence near the USA.
The US policy of containment was successful in Cuba because
Kennedy increased his
reputation at home and worldwide by avoiding war and forcing
Khrushchev to back down.
This was the beginning of Khrushchevs fall from power, but it
also made Soviet leaders wary of their actions which might offend
the USA.

How far could the USSR be blamed for the Cuban Missile Crisis?
Explain your answer.

USSR

The USSR was to blame because they placed nuclear missiles on

Cuba. Medium range missiles could reach most of the USA from
Cuba and the USA felt threatened by this. The nuclear missiles
were too close for comfort.

USA

The USA was to blame for the crisis. At the Bay of Pigs, the
Americans had tried to overthrow Castros regime and failed.
Castro feared that America may try to attack Cuba again and he
asked the USSR to provide arms to protect his country.

Which leader, Kennedy or Khrushchev, handled the Cuban Missile

Crisis better?
Explain your answer

Khrushchev

Khrushchev was following a risky strategy.

He must have known he would cause a crisis. What was he really
doing?
He was able to claim a personal triumph as Cuba remained a
useful ally close to the USA.

In the Soviet Union the fact that he had been forced to back down
was quickly forgotten and instead his role of responsible
peacemaker, willing to make the first move to compromise, was
highlighted.

In the long term, Khrushchev achieved the removal of NATO

missiles from Turkey.

Kennedy

The crisis damaged Khrushchevs prestige, despite the fact he

claimed the crisis was a
victory for the USSR. Some leading Soviet politicians were angry
that their country had been forced to back down. They played a
significant part in Khrushchevs dismissal in 1964.
Kennedy came out of the crisis with a greatly improved reputation
in his own country and throughout the West. He had stood up to
Khrushchev and forced him to back down.
Following two letters from Khrushchev, Kennedy decided to reply
to the first and not the second, accepting the offer made for the
removal of missiles and this approach worked as the bases were
dismantled.

Both Wrongly

Both men realised that the Crisis had given the world a serious
scare and were anxious to
ensure it did not happen again. It was agreed to set up a hot-line
between Washington and

Moscow to enable direct communication to take place. In 1963 a

Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was signed.