International Relations I

International Relations Between Two Wars

Lecture by: Fahad Shah Rashdi
 Objectives:
 Russian Revolution
 World War I
 Fascism
 League of Nations
 World War II
RUSSIAN REVOLUTION 1905
 Background: in January 1905, about 200,000 workers and their families marched to the czar’s royal palace in St.
Petersburg. The marchers demanded reforms. The soldiers fired on the unarmed crowd. That is known as Bloody
Sunday
 The Tsar’s Empire:
 Nationalities: only 40% spoke Russian as their first language
 Peasants and the countryside: 80% Russians were peasants; famine and starvation; most of the land was unsuitable for
farming. Main discontent was over land owned by aristocracy, the Church and the Tsar
 The aristocracy: 1.5% and owned 25% of the land; acted as local officials
 New industries, cities and the working class: Tsars emphasis on industrialization; slums
 The middle class: the class arose out of industrialization. Capitalists emerged
Opposition to the Tsar (from three
particular groups):
1. Liberals or Cadets: middle-class wanting greater democracy in Russia
2. The Socialist Revolutionaries: to carve up the huge estates of the nobility and
hand that over to the peasants
3. The Social Democratic Party: followed the ideas of Karl Marx; in 1903 split into
Bolsheviks (led by Lenin and to create a revolution) and Mensheviks (Russia not
ready for revolution)
 CAUSES OF THE 1905 REVOLUTION:
 Long-term:
 Economic hardship: agrarian economy
 Political opposition: middle class wanted share of political power
 Famines in 1892, 1898 and 1901
 Redemption payments
 Weakness of Tsar Nicholas II
 Short-term:
 Defeat in Russo-Japanese War
 9 January 1905- Bloody Sunday
 Analysis:
 The revolution failed but it served as a serious warning of what might happen in the future
RUSSIAN REVOLUTION 1917
 Setting the scene:
 Between 1904 and 1917, Russia faced a series of crises
 Loss in Russo-Japanese War
 Bloody Sunday: The Revolution of 1905
 Duma- Russia’s first parliament- formed. Dissolved within ten weeks and many Dumas formed
 WWI: the final blow. Huge human and economic losses
 Tsar decided to rally his troops and Tsarina ran the government
 The dreadful conditions at home and borders
 The March Revolution:
 Strikes over shortages of bread and fuel
 Soldiers sided with them, fired at their commanding officers and joined the rebellion
 Forced Czar to abdicate its throne
 Provisional government set and continued to fight war: lost support from both soldiers and civilians
 Lenin returns to Russia. Reached in April 1917
Reasons for the February Revolution
• The Tsar’s regime collapse (reasons):
• Failures in the war
• The mutiny in the army
• Formation of soviets (local councils)
• The tsarina and Rasputin
• Food shortages
• Strikes
• Duma setting up alternate government
• Discontent in the countryside
The Bolshevik Revolution
 Lenin and the Bolsheviks gained control of the Petrograd Soviet
 Lenin’s slogan- “Peace, Land and Bread”- was gaining widespread appeal.
 The Provisional government topples: Nov 1917, Bolshevik Red Guards stormed the Winter Palace in Petrograd
 Bolsheviks in power: Lenin and the Bolsheviks gave control of factories to the workers
 March 1918, Russia and Germany signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk; Russia lost large chunk of territory; people objected
against the Bolsheviks and their policies
 Civil war (1918-20): around 15 million died. In the end, the Red Army triumphed. But Lenin and the Bolsheviks
faced overwhelming problems
 Conditions before the WWI
 Russian Revolution of 1905
 Rigidness in alliances
 Rapid colonization
 Militarization
 Industrialization
Conditions in the Central Powers or the
Triple Alliance
1. Germany:
• Unification of Germany
• Second most powerful industry after the US in 1914
• Search for overseas colonies
• Built world’s second most powerful fleet
• Sense of encirclement by Russian-French Friendship
2. Austria-Hungary:
• It was made up of people of different ethnic groups who wanted independence
3. Italy:
• Wanted to set up colonies and build up an overseas empire
• Joined Germany and Austria for colonization
• Not a strong industrial or military power
Conditions in the Triple ENTENTE:
1. Britain:
• France and Britain reached a number of Agreements about colonies in North Africa in 1905 (win-win
situation for both)
• Russia weakened in 1904 war with Japan; weakened Russia not a threat to Britain
• Britain was worried about Germany (Germany wanted strong navy and empire)
• Done Agreement with France up to 1904 and Russia in 1907
2. France:
• Built up industries and armies
• Concerned about: protection against German attack and to get back the rich industrial region of Alsace-
Lorraine which Germany took away
3. Russia:
• Agrarian country worried about the growing power of Germany
• Lost against Japan in 1905 and revolution in 1905 against Tsar Nicholas II
• Russians began Building a large army to prevent another defeat
 WORLD WAR I
 WHY IT STARTED? (CAUSES):
1. Militarism:
• governments’ attitude: war as a valid means of foreign policy
• Military build up in Europe in 1914: From maximum in Germany at 2.2 million soldiers and 97 warships to minimum In Great
Britain at 711,000 soldiers and 185 warships
• Security dilemma: countries followed each other in arms build up for Balance of Power
2. Alliances:
• The Central Powers or Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy) formed in 1882 versus the Triple Entente (Britain,
France and Russia). Formed in 1907
3. Nationalism:
• Rose due to competition for materials and markets, territorial disputes and nationalism in Balkans of different ethnicities
4. Imperialism:
• Competition for colonies in Asia and Africa
• Example: in 1905 and again in 1911, Germany and France nearly fought over who would control Morocco
 Immediate cause:
• Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Causes of WWI according to IR
 Neo-realists: a war bred by uncertainty and circumstances beyond the
control of those involved
 Explained by structuralism, a neorealist theory
 Shift in Balance of Power by Germany
 Rational Choice theory: German elites’ preferences for a war with
France and Russia for continental and global supremacy; ‘iron law of
history’
 Other state-level analysis: nationalism and domestic factors
 Liberalists: lack of interdependence, international law, conflict
resolution
START OF THE WAR
 Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28 1914 => Austria-Hungary’s declaration of war
against Serbia set off a chain reaction within the alliance system => alliance system
collapsed
 ‘The Schlieffen Plan’: German Plan: in the event of a two-front war, first attacking
France and then Russia.
 By the mid-August 1914, the battle lines were clearly drawn: two blocs formed
Immediate Effects:
 A generation of Europeans are killed or wounded (about 8.5 million died and 21 million more wounded)
 Economic losses: about $338 billion
 Dynasties fall in Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia
 New Countries Created in Eastern Europe
 Nationalist movements
 Mandates created in Middle East
 The League of Nations is established to help promote peace

Long-term Effects:
 Many nations feel bitter and betrayed by the peace settlements
 Problems that helped cause the war- nationalism, competition- remain
POST-WWI:
 The Paris Peace Conference, 1919-1920: (the aims of the leaders at the Paris Peace Conference)
 Options/aims : punish Germany, cripple Germany to avoid any war, to reward the winners or to establish a just
and lasting peace
 France (Georges Clemenceau):
 Demanded a treaty that would weaken Germany as much as possible
 Revenge and punishment
 Make Germany pay for the damage
 USA (Woodrow Wilson):
 End war by making a fair peace. To make the world safe
 Wanted disarmament and the League of nations
 Self-determination for the Eastern Europe
 Great Britain (David Lloyd George):
 Middle ground between Clemenceau and Wilson; to justly punish Germany but not harsh. Wanted justice not revenge
The Treaty of Versailles: Major Provisions:
 League of Nations:
 International peace organizations
 Territorial losses:
 Germany returns Alsace-Lorraine to France
 Germany surrenders all of its overseas colonies
 Military Restrictions:
 Limited the size of German Army: 100,000 men
 Germany prohibited from importing or manufacturing weapons or war material
 Germany forbidden to build or buy submarines or have an air force
 War Guilt (Article 231):
 Sole responsibility for the war place on Germany
 Reparation:
 Germany forced to pay the Allies $33billion (6.6bn pounds) in over 30 years
Six key points of the 14 points of Wilson:

 Setting up a League of Nations

 Disarmament
 Self-Determination for the people of Europe
 Freedom for colonies
 Freedom of the seas
 Free trade
POST WWI according to IR
 High point for liberal idealism:
 W Wilson 14 points
 The creation of the League of Nations
 The founding of ICJ
 The Five Power Treaty (to prevent arms race)
 The Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928
 The Nine Power Treaty (freedom of trade with China)
LEAGUE OF NATIONS:
 There was a disagreement about what kind of organization it should be
 Wilson: to be like a world parliament where representatives of all nations could meet together regularly to decide on any matters that
affected them all
 British leaders: a simple organization that would just get together in emergencies
 Main interest: rebuilding trade and the British Empire
 France: a strong League with its own army
 Main interest: Keeping Germany weak

 The aims of the League (in the Covenant):

 To discourage aggression from any nation
 To encourage countries to co-operate, especially in business and trade
 To encourage nations to disarm
 To improve the living and working conditions of people in all parts of the world
 Main features:
 Covenant: a set of 26 Articles or rules which all members of the League agreed to follow
 Article 10: collective security
 One of the tasks: To uphold and enforce the Treaty of Versailles
STRENGTHS:

 Set up by the Treaty of Versailles, which every nation signed and it had 58 nations
as members by the 1930s
 Universal membership
 To enforce its will:
 Moral condemnation: The League called this the ‘Community of Power’
 Offer arbitration through CIJ
 Trade sanctions
 Agree to military force
 Most major powers joined the League: met 4-5 times a year to solve disputes
SUCCESSES:

 Refugees: in the first five years after the war, about 400,000 prisoners were
returned to their homes by the League’s agencies
 Working conditions: ILO campaigned for improved working conditions. It
introduced a resolution for a maximum 48-hour week and an 8-hour day
 Health: the Health Committee, which later became the WHO, worked hard to
defeat the dreaded disease leprosy
 Transport: made recommendations on marking shipping lanes and produced an
international highway code for road users
 Social problems: blacklisted illegal drug trade companies; freed 200,000 slaves in
Sierra Leone.
Successes:
 Silesia, 1921: Germany and Poland agreed to partition after a plebiscite
 Aaland Islands, 1921: League said the Islands belong to Finland; Finland and
Sweden agreed
 Mosul, 1924: the Turks demanded Mosul, Iraq. The League supported Iraq.
Turkey agreed
 Bulgaria, 1925: Greece invaded Bulgaria, but withdrew when Bulgaria appealed
to the League
 Kellogg-Briand Pact, 1928: signed by 23 nations and supported by 65, to outlaw
war
CAUSES OF THE FAILURE OF THE
LEAGUE OF NATIONS:
 The USA and other important countries were absent:
 Germany didn’t join until 1926 and left in 1933; the USSR didn’t join until 1934; Japan left in
1933 and Italy left in 1937; and the USA never joined
 Lack of troops: relied on the cooperation of its members who never commit troops
 Decisions were slow: need of a unanimous decisions
 The treaties it had to uphold were seen as unfair: Treaty of Versailles
 Economic sanctions did not work: the League members didn’t willingly impose them
 The self-interest of leading members
 The Great Depression
Failures of 1920s (VIMCOD):
 Vilna, 1920: Poland refused the League to withdraw from Vilna
 Invasion of Ruhr, 1923: by France; the League was not even consulted, and Britain
disagreed
 Memel, 1923: the League told Lithuania to leave, but the Conference of
Ambassadors agreed
 Corfu, 1923: Italy occupied Corfu. The CoAs overruled the League’s order to
Mussolini to leave
 Other treaties that failed: Washington, 1921; Dawes Plan, 1924; Locarno Pact, 1925;
and The Geneva Protocol, 1924
 Disarmament: Britain objected to the 1923 conference and 1932-34 conference was
wrecked when Hitler demanded parity with France
Failures of 1930s:
 Manchurian Crisis 1932-33:
 After a long delay, no action was taken
 Made the League seem weak and ineffective

 Abyssinian Crisis 1035-36:

 Italy invaded Abyssinia
 No agreement on effective sanctions against Italy
 Britain and France tried to do a secret deal to give most of Abyssinia to Italy
Fascism:
 Fascism is a form of radical authoritarian nationalism that came to prominence in
early 20th century Europe
 It originated in Italy during WWI and spread to other European countries
 WWI causes Europeans to distrust democracy: communism and fascism struggle for
control over many European countries.
 Italy Under Mussolini:
 General discontent and disillusionment 1918-22:
 Major problems:
 Dissatisfaction with the peace settlement
 Weak economy
 Lawlessness
 Weak government
Key features of Fascism:
 Powerful and continuing nationalism
 Violation of human rights
 Identification of enemies as a unifying cause
 Supremacy of the military
 Controlled mass media
 Obsession with national security
 Religion and government are intertwined
 Corporate power is protected
 Labor power is suppressed
 Obsession with crime and punishment
 Fraudulent elections
Brief History:
 Rise of Fascism:
 March 1919, Benito Mussolini formed the first Fascist squads
 Initially Mussolini’s ideas were socialist and anti-clerical
 Mussolini failed to gain popular support, so he changed his ideas
 Socialist disturbances 1920 => workers occupied many factories
 Growing support for Mussolini from industrialists and right-wing
 Catholic Church and King did not saw Fascism a threat more than communism
 Mussolini supported monarchy in September 1922
 Elections of May 1921 => the Prime Minister formed an election alliance which included Fascists
 The March on Rome: (an important turning point in the destiny of Italy)
 September 1922, the Fascists planned to seize real power
 October => about 50,000 Blackshirts prepared to march on the capital
 Oct 29 => the King refused to proclaim martial law and instead invited Mussolini to form a new government
 Oct 30=> triumphant entry into Rome
History Continues
 Creation of the Fascist State:
 His first cabinet: representation of various parties. Little by little, he created the basis of autocratic rule
 November 1923: change in electoral system to help the Fascist Party
 Intimidating tactics by Mussolini’s Blackshirts => 64% voting
 Socialist leaders, who criticized the results, were killed
 From Jan 1925, democratic rule disappeared altogether, suppression of all the opposition to Fascism
 December 1925: he gained the right to rule by decree, subject only to veto/dismissal of King
 He formed secret police (1927) and filled bureaucracy with Fascists
 He ruled through the Fascist Grand Council
 Causes of Mussolini’s success and rise to power:
 Plans to make Italy strong and great
 Skilful persuasive oratory
 Use of intimidation and violence to suppress opposition
Causes for rise of Fascism in Italy:
 Economic factors
 -Major economic instability weakened European political life -Uncontrollable inflation and mass unemployment.
  Treaty of Versailles
 -Dissatisfaction with terms of WW1 peace treaties contributed to the rise of fascism.
 -Italy didn’t receive territory it was promised.
 Fear of Communism
 -The upper and middle classes feared the spread of communism following the Russian Revolution.
 -Communist revolts in Germany, Austria and Hungary in 1919 contributed to this fear.
 -Fascism was seen as a better barrier to communism than democracy.
  Weak democracies
 -Weak multi-party governments
 -Economic crisis
 -Political instability
 Support of Middle Classes
 -The Middle Classes (mainly in rural areas) felt trapped between unionised workers and the wealthy elites.
 -Fascism claimed to represent their interests
 Social Unrest
 – strikes for higher wages, land seizures by peasants in the South.
WORLD WAR II
background:
WORLD WAR II
 Causes:
 Nationalism and nationalistic leaders in Germany, Italy and Japan
 Appeasement
 Acts of aggression by Axis Powers
 Anti-communism
 The Great Depression
 Treaty of Versailles
 Failure of the League of Nations
 US isolationism
 According to IR:
 Global level analysis: Multi-polarity
 Global level analysis: Political economy: protectionism and imperialism
 State-level analysis: militarism
 Individual level analysis: Adolf Hitler
 Effects of WWII:
 Huge human loss: estimated 50 million dead
 Decolonization: ‘wind of change’; old empires of Britain and France were ruined
 Cold War between the USA and USSR
 Arms race due to Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bomb
 Germany was divided
 The League of Nations was disbanded and the UN was formed
Post WWII

 Changes in international system

 Changes in international economic order
 A debate between realism and liberalism