Why were the foreign policies of Germany and Italy so aggressive in the 1930s?

The Paris Peace Settlement Treaty of Versailles was punitive.

Germany lost territory, power and pride, it was humiliated publicly and had no say in the treaty and was not given the chance to negotiate.

They had to sign the Treaty or face continuing the war. They did not have a choice.

Diktat, November Criminals, Stabbed in the Back.

Terms of Versailles

Loss of Territory, loss of Empire Demilitarization of Rhineland, Saar

and Danzig under League of Nations control

War Guilt Clause – guilty of causing war=reparations bill

Restriction on army, navy No air force or submarines Banned from unifying with Austria

Italy

Expected more from the settlement after abandoning wartime alliance with Germany and switching sides.

A German speaking area was transferred to Italy, but they expected more

What can be said about settlement? None of the signatories were completely

satisfied, it was a compromise It was known from the very start that

the Treaty would ‘cause trouble’ but there was nothing that would suit everyone.

What did Foch say about it? JM Keynes? AJP Taylor?

Btw the legacy of these treaties still being felt to present day-Bosnia, Serbia, Czech Republic etc

However, fallback position….. We have the League of Nations –

Created in 1920 with the aim of ensuring that there will never be another war.

How were aims to be achieved? Collective Security and Disarmament

Therefore, if everyone is reasonable then any grievances could be addressed peacefully – if any violence needed then it would be under auspices of LoN which would be open, transparent and fair.

League of Nations

Jan 1920, aim “to promote international cooperation and to achieve international peace and security”

How? Members to work together to maintain peace.

Members agreed to disarm ‘to the lowest point consistent with national security’-how do you identify what this lowest point is?

Also

Members commit to collective security. The theory was that members would use ‘peer pressure’ to sort problems out, if necessary the League would fight under its own banner rather than states taking matters in their own hands.

Hopefully military sanctions would be last resort, economic and diplomatic sanctions would be applied first. Members could be expelled from League

It all sounds fantastic, especially after the trauma of Great War

How did the League fare in practice? It had some success –eg.Repatriating

prisoners of war after WW1, Aaland Islands, Silesia, tackling drug trafficking, humanitarian work eg vaccinations

It was welcomed by many with relief – nobody wanted another war

However….

USA did not join, even though the ideas underpinning it-self determination, as well as the League itself was President Wilson’s idea

Britain and France (the ‘big powers’ in the League) differed in their attitude to League and also Treaty of Versailles, this spilled over into the confidence in the League

France mistrusted Germany, started work on Maginot Line, marched into the Ruhr region in 1923 without permission of the League

On a more positive note

1925 Locarno Agreement 1925 saw relations between France and Germany thaw a little

Germany agreed to abide by Treaty of Versailles border in the west (did not mention the East)

1928 Kellogg-Briand Pact – 62 countries agreed not to use war as a means of solving disputes unless in self-defence – a high point for collective security

More weaknesses of League Slow to come to decisions because it didn’t

want to be seen as ‘unjust’ Found it difficult to get everyone to agree

to disarmament, especially the French, first Disarmament Conference not till 1932 in Geneva

Anyway, how could it force members to comply with its rulings? No army

Some countries were not members eg Germany did not join till 1926, Russia 1934

While the Disarmament Conference was planned…… 931 the Manchurian Crisis occurred which

showed the weakness of the League. Japan had serious economic problems,

government failed to solve them. Army staged takeover of govt and invaded Manchuria in China. China asked League to intervene, took a year for report to come out and League’s decision unsatisfactory to all. Japan left the League – evidence of weakness of the institution.

Abyssinian Crisis 1935

League member Italy invaded Abyssinia on a pretext. Haile Selassie appealed to the League yet at the same time Britain and France actually helped Italy to take Abyssinian territory in order to keep Mussolini from entering pact with Hitler who had begun to rearm in public in 1934.

Again, clear evidence of weakness of League

Financial Disaster

Oct 1929 Wall Street Crash, a disaster on a global scale.

In the hard economic climate, countries that did not have a secure democratic background were seduced by promises of ‘quick fixes’. In Italy Mussolini distracted the public from problems at home with promises that Italy would be great again, and in Germany, Hitler’s solution to the economic depression and promises to make Germany great again fell on fertile ground

Fascist foreign policy

Both Germany and Italy vowed to make their countries great again. Mussolini – Roman Empire, Mare Nostrum, wanted territories in Africa and more influence in Balkans and Mediterranean.

Germany wanted land in east as Lebensraum Germany wanted ‘Greater Germany’ where German speaking people –

self determination Wanted the destruction of Versailles Racist in tone and in action at home Difficult to see how the above could be achieved without going to war,

how could LoN cope? Remember, at the time that the Fascists were ascendant, Europe was

undergoing economic recession mainly to do with financial crisis of 1929. Fascism seemed to offer a solution and as such was quite attractive.

There were several Fascist groups in Britain and in 1932 united in The British Union of Fascists was set up under Oswald Moseley . It had many supporters, in 1934 had 40,000 members. Moseley met Mussolini and, like many others, admired the energy and commitment of the Fascists.

So, why aggressive in 1930s? Financial crisis – rise of fascism Anger and political opportunism – destroy

Versailles Weakness of League of Nations had been

demonstrated-made Fascists bolder Willingness of Britain to appease and

negotiate without going through League – encouraged challenges and undermined League

Britain in 1930s could not afford to rearm, its public did not want another war and believed Germany had been treated too harshly