IGCSE History

Why did the USA not join the League? The USA did not join the league as congress voted against joining the league as they did not want to get involved in European politics. The public and congress wanted the USA to be an isolationist country and not get caught up in European politics or problems. Republicans opposed Wilson because he was a democrat. US public opinion against being part of European affairs How did this weaken the League? This weakens the league as The sanctions were less effective as they were not as much of a threat without the US as the US controlled lots of trade so the sanctions would not work if the us did not apply them. The loss of French and British trade was not as much of a threat as the loss of US trade as this would have more of an effect on the economy. Also France and Britain were poorly placed to lead without the US as they did not have the resources, and economic power to lead effectively and were more focused on rebuilding their...

The structural and membership weaknesses of the League? Point Evidence Explanation – this made the League weak because… Type of weakness – structural/ membership/ other The League relied on collective security – every country acting together to defend the lands and interests of all nations. Not needed here. If you were a member you were guaranteed security from the other members, this relies on a lot of trust from the other countries. An army is required so the countries relied on others for security rather than having their own army  structural Membership The USA did not join. Congress didn’t allow the US to join the league of nations because they didn’t want to get involved in European politics  Britain and France were then the most powerful leading countries but they did not have the resources after the war to fill the gap that the USA left. So...

What were the aims of the League Of Nations? A = aggression reduced Its important so that there is no more conflict between and inside the countries C = cooperation So that the countries get along and there is no more conflict or wars I = improve living and working conditions To make the population happier which will result in less conflict in the future D = disarm So that there is less violence and killing which would reduce wars and conflict 

What work did the League need to do? The league needed to re-evaluate the treaty    T he peace was forced upon Germany and they had to accept it but this has left them bitter and humiliated and has made them resent the other countries and he doesn’t believe the terms of the treaty will last and currently stand as a short-term solution. The league needs to not let into the aggressive countries  Lots of countries were not satisfied as they were not given the land they were promised The countries have become aggressive. The league needed to look after health  There are wider problems, such as the influenza epidemic.

Why did the aims of the big three at Versailles differ? (6 Marks)  The aims of the big three at Versailles was different because each of them had a different experience of the war and so hopes to achieve different things from Germany. France very heavily wanted Germany to pay for the damage they had caused to the country, as over 8000 miles of farmland was ruined and over 1 million lives lost. France hoped to achieve revenge and to weaken Germany. They had this strongest view as they were closest to the action and therefore experienced the worst damage as a result. Whereas America was more focused on achieving peace, they may have had a different mindset as they were more distant from the action and did not experience anywhere near that much destruction. As well as this the distance meant that the population of the country was not as involved and did not have as strong of an opinion as those who suffered more during the war. Britain  ...

Why did the Treaty of Versailles cause so much bitterness in Germany? 6 marks. The treaty of Versailles caused so much bitterness because the German people felt that the victors were being greedy and demanding too much, that the Germans would never be able to pay back.  As part of the treaty, German would have to pay £6.6 billion in reparations, this massive amount caused many economic problems in Germany and was one of the main causes of the hyperinflation of 1923. This left the Germans bitter as it left the country in ruins, as a way of dealing with the problem the government simply printed more money which made the situation worse, the German people blamed the treaty for the problems the country was facing. Another reason why there was so much bitterness was that the Germans felt embarrassed and humiliated as they felt that their country had been stripped of its once high position among the nations. As Germany was forced to take the blame for the war the Germans did not f...