The Interwar Years, 1919 to 1936 and then 36-39
Introductory Essay
The Interwar units cover international relations between the years 1919 and 1939 (Paris Peace Conference marking the diplomatic endpoint of WW1 and the start of hostilities that marked the beginning of WW2 in the European theatre as Germany invaded Poland in September of 1939). As the IB syllabus states, this topic is found in the European Regional Option Topic 8. In addition, it will be the prescribed Paper One topic, so it is of interest to HL and SL students. For proper coverage, the following topics are suggested by the IB for Prescribed Topic One:
• aims of the participants and peacemakers: Wilson and the Fourteen Points
• terms of the Paris Peace Treaties 1919-20: Versailles, St Germain, Trianon, Neuilly, Sèvres/Lausanne 1923
• the geopolitical and economic impact of the treaties on Europe; the establishment and impact of the mandate system
• enforcement of the provisions of the treaties: US isolationism—the retreat from the Anglo–American Guarantee; disarmament—Washington, London, Geneva conferences
• the League of Nations: effects of the absence of major powers; the principle of collective security and early attempts at peacekeeping (1920-5)
• the Ruhr Crisis (1923); Locarno and the “Locarno Spring” (1925)
• Depression and threats to international peace and collective security: Manchuria (1931-3) and Abyssinia (1935-6).
In addition, small groupings of coverage will prepare HL students for Paper 3 Topic 8, as follows:
• Weimar Germany 1919-33: political, constitutional, economic, financial and social problems
• Italy 1919-39: Mussolini’s domestic and foreign policies
• The impact of the Great Depression (case study of its effect on one country in Europe) We cover France and Germany
• Spanish Civil War: background to the outbreak of the Civil War; causes and consequences; foreign involvement; reasons for Nationalist victory
• Hitler’s domestic and foreign policy (1933-39) Covered in Hitler Unit (SPS)
• Search for collective security; appeasement in the interwar years; the failure of international diplomacy; the outbreak of war in 1939
We can make some generalizations about the period... How to deal with the post war German state was on top of just about everyone's agenda. Other big topics were the issues surrounding the newly formed Soviet state, which combined with German concerns, dominated Eastern European diplomacy in the Interwar period. As for the 'democracies' in the West, the anticolonial movements were just gaining strength during the Interwar period, providing an unwanted diversion to the problems facing the European continent, especially in the post Crash 1930s. The major issue confronting the League of Nations revolved around the struggle between internationalism and national self interest. At first, internationalism had a chance to succeed, but as the Depression deepened in intensity and duration, national self interest won out. The major shift toward authoritarian forms of government in the 1930s became a dominant issue of the Interwar period, with Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin and others providing the most serious challenge to 'collective security'... so much the great vehicle of hope for peace in 1920. Also, the 'proxy war' became an important part of the 20th century landscape for the first time during the Spanish Civil War.
JSTOR
The following professional journal articles provide depth coverage for most topics listed by the IB syllabus. They are not meant to be read from start to finish but to be used as a resource to examine a topic in further depth. Each article is linked as a PDF document.
The United States and Germany in the Aftermath of War: I-1918-1929
Frank Spencer
International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-), Vol. 43, No. 4. (Oct., 1967), pp. 693-703.
Sectoral Conflict and Foreign Economic Policy, 1914-1940
Jeff Frieden
International Organization, Vol. 42, No. 1, The State and American Foreign Economic Policy. (Winter, 1988), pp. 59-90.
Nicholas II to Salt II: Continuity and Change in East-West Diplomacy
Walter C. Clemens, Jr.
International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-), Vol. 49, No. 3. (Jul., 1973), pp. 385-401.
The Anglo-Soviet Trade Agreement, March 1921
M. V. Glenny
Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 5, No. 2. (1970), pp. 63-82.
Open Diplomacy at the Washington Conference of 1921-2: The British and French Experience
Donald S. Birn
Comparative Studies in Society and History, Vol. 12, No. 3. (Jul., 1970), pp. 297-319.
'Consistently with Honour': Great Britain, the League of Nations and the Corfu Crisis of 1923
Peter J. Yearwood
Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 21, No. 4. (Oct., 1986), pp. 559-579.
Lionel Kochan
Soviet Studies, Vol. 2, No. 2. (Oct., 1950), pp. 109-122.
Economic Stagnation in Europe in the Interwar Period
Douglas F. Dowd
The Journal of Economic History, Vol. 15, No. 3. (Sep., 1955), pp. 273-280.
The Macroeconomics of the Great Depression: A Comparative Approach
Ben S. Bernanke
Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Vol. 27, No. 1. (Feb., 1995), pp. 1-28.
Financial Flows across Frontiers during the Interwar Depression
Harold James
The Economic History Review, New Series, Vol. 45, No. 3, European Special Issue. (Aug., 1992), pp. 594-613.
Alliance Pathology: Institutional Lessons of the 1930s
Alexander J. Groth; Richard G. Randall
Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 106, No. 1. (Spring, 1991), pp. 109-121.
Imperial Dreams: The Mussolini-Laval Accords of January 1935
G. Bruce Strang
The Historical Journal, Vol. 44, No. 3. (Sep., 2001), pp. 799-809.
France and the Remilitarization of the Rhineland, 1936
Stephen A. Schuker
French Historical Studies, Vol. 14, No. 3. (Spring, 1986), pp. 299-338.
The Anglo-German Naval Agreement of 1935: An Interim Judgment
D. C. Watt
The Journal of Modern History, Vol. 28, No. 2. (Jun., 1956), pp. 155-175.
New Perspectives on Appeasement: Some Implications for International Relations
J. L. Richardson
World Politics, Vol. 40, No. 3. (Apr., 1988), pp. 289-316.
Appeasement Revisited: The United States, Great Britain, and Germany, 1933-1940
Arnold A. Offner
The Journal of American History, Vol. 64, No. 2. (Sep., 1977), pp. 373-393.
Six between Roosevelt and Hitler: America's Role in the Appeasement of Nazi Germany
Frederick W. Marks III
The Historical Journal, Vol. 28, No. 4. (Dec., 1985), pp. 969-982.
Culture and Military Doctrine: France between the Wars
Elizabeth Kier
International Security, Vol. 19, No. 4. (Spring, 1995), pp. 65-93.
The Legality of the Annexation of Austria by Germany
Herbert Wright
The American Journal of International Law, Vol. 38, No. 4. (Oct., 1944), pp. 621-635.
Britain and the Sudeten Issue, 1938: The Evolution of a Policy
Harindar Aulach
Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 18, No. 2. (Apr., 1983), pp. 233-259.
The Soviet Decision for a Pact with Nazi Germany
Geoffrey Roberts
Soviet Studies, Vol. 44, No. 1. (1992), pp. 57-78.
Syllabus readings
Please ask Mr. Faught for the URL containing the readings.
Websites
Interwar GOOGLE search engine
League of Nations Photo Archive
Northwestern University: League of Nations Statistical and Disarmament Documents
John D. Claire: League of Nations Revision