The League of Nations & the Manchurian Crisis (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE History)

Revision Note

Zoe Wade

Written by: Zoe Wade

Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett

Causes of the Manchurian Crisis

A map showing the location of Manchuria
A map showing the location of Manchuria
  • Manchuria was a province of China

    • It bordered Korea, which Japan owned from 1905

    • It was mostly agricultural land

  • By March 1932, Japan invaded and controlled the whole of Manchuria

A concept map showing the reasons why Japan invaded Manchuria
A concept map showing the reasons why Japan invaded Manchuria

Examiner Tips and Tricks

In your revision, it is helpful to consider the ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors behind certain events. ‘Push’ factors are events or motivations for someone to act. The Depression caused the Japanese economy to fail due to the country’s lack of natural resources. This ‘pushed’ Japan to invade Manchuria. ‘Pull’ factors are benefits from performing an action. Japan already owned the South Manchurian Railway and other businesses in Manchuria. This ‘pulled’ Japan to invade Manchuria as they already had a way of moving around the country. Considering the ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors will help you to explain why Japan invaded Manchuria and how this affected the League of Nations.

Events of the Manchurian Crisis

A flowchart showing Japan’s actions in Manchuria, the League’s reaction and the eventual outcome
A flowchart showing Japan’s actions in Manchuria, the League’s reaction and the eventual outcome

Consequences of the Manchurian Crisis

  • The League of Nations looked weak

    • The League considered the Lytton Report in February 1933, 18 months after Japan had invaded Manchuria

      • This was too slow to react to a crisis of this scale

    • Britain and France did not want to stand up against Japan

      • Japan was a permanent member of the League

        • It had equal power to Britain and France to veto any actions

      • Britain and France had colonies in the Far East

        • If the League started a war with Japan, it would affect Britain and France’s imperial trade

  • The League did not have key countries as members

    • The USA would have the military strength to stand up against Japan

      • In addition, the US was Japan’s key trading partner

    • The USSR did not want Japan to invade closer to its territory and would use force to stop this

  • The League’s lack of reaction encouraged further aggression

    • Germany and Italy were also looking to expand their territories

    • Hitler and Mussolini knew now that the League would not stop them from achieving their aggressive foreign policy aims

Worked Example

Study Source A. Why was this cartoon published at this time? Explain your answer using details of the source and your knowledge

8 marks

Source A: An American cartoon created in 1932 and republished in the Pittsburgh Press in 1933. The Nine-Power Treaty of 1922 recognised the territorial integrity of China

An American cartoon created in 1932 and republished in the Pittsburgh Press in 1933
An American cartoon created in 1932 and republished in the Pittsburgh Press in 1933

Partial answer:

The cartoon was published in 1932 to urge the League of Nations to take action against Japan (1). The cartoon shows Japan setting fire to various League of Nations treaties such as the Nine-Power Treaty (1922), which protected Chinese territory (1). Japan invaded Manchuria illegally through the Mukden Incident in 1931 but had captured the whole of Manchuria from China by March 1932 (1). The cartoon was published to put public pressure on the League to stand up against Japan’s aggressive actions (1).

Examiner Tips and Tricks

This style of question in Paper Two needs you to consider:

  • What the message of the source is. Identify the event it is referring to and if it is presenting the event positively or negatively. In this example, the cartoonist has drawn about the Manchuria Crisis in a negative way

  • Knowledge of the event. This cartoon assumes that the reader knows about the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Nine-Power Treaty and Japan’s actions in Manchuria. Add relevant own knowledge of these events to support your answer

  • The purpose of the cartoon. The cartoon is published in an American newspaper. The cartoonist knew that the USA was not in the League. However, the image could be distributed around the world. This would increase public pressure on the League to stand up against Japan

The World Disarmament Conference, 1932

  • During the Manchuria Crisis, the League hosted the World Disarmament Conference

    • The event took place in Geneva, Switzerland

    • It ran from 1932 to 1934

  • The Manchuria Crisis affected the success of the conference

    • It proved the weakness of the League against countries with a large military force like Japan

      • This only encouraged countries to pursue a policy of militarism

  • The World Disarmament Conference ended in failure in 1934

    • Weimar politicians challenged all countries to disarm to the level of Germany

      • France disagreed with Germany’s proposal

    • Hitler became the leader of Germany in 1933

      • He promised to not rearm Germany if all countries destroyed their weapons in five years

        • Hitler was already secretly rearming Germany

        • France, Czechoslovakia and Poland feared for their safety as they bordered Germany. They refused Hitler’s offer

        • Hitler used this as an excuse to leave the League of Nations in November 1933

Why was the Failure of the World Disarmament Conference Important?

  • The League was inactive

    • It took ten years for the League to assemble world leaders to discuss disarmament

  • More countries became aggressive

    • Japan and Germany were no longer members of the League

    • Militarism and rearmament began in many countries

Worked Example

Why did Hitler take Germany out of the League of Nations in 1933? 

6 marks

Partial answers:
One reason why Hitler took Germany out of the League is the issue of disarmament (1). Hitler was angry that no other country had disarmed to the extent that Germany had been forced to in the Treaty of Versailles (1). During the World Disarmament Conference, Hitler challenged the other countries to disarm within five years (1). European countries refused, allowing Hitler to argue that Germany was being treated differently to other countries. Europe’s reluctance to disarm gave Hitler the perfect excuse to leave the League of Nations in November 1933 (1).

Examiner Tips and Tricks

In Paper One, ‘explain why’ questions are worth either six or ten marks. For full marks in this question, an examiner is looking for two fully explained reasons as to why Hitler left the League of Nations.

To complete this answer, you could discuss Hitler’s desire to rearm or how the League had not reacted to Japan’s withdrawal from the organisation.

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Zoe Wade

Author: Zoe Wade

Expertise: History

Zoe has worked in education for 10 years as a teaching assistant and a teacher. This has given her an in-depth perspective on how to support all learners to achieve to the best of their ability. She has been the Lead of Key Stage 4 History, showing her expertise in the Edexcel GCSE syllabus and how best to revise. Ever since she was a child, Zoe has been passionate about history. She believes now, more than ever, the study of history is vital to explaining the ever-changing world around us. Zoe’s focus is to create accessible content that breaks down key historical concepts and themes to achieve GCSE success.

Bridgette Barrett

Author: Bridgette Barrett

Expertise: Geography Lead

After graduating with a degree in Geography, Bridgette completed a PGCE over 25 years ago. She later gained an MA Learning, Technology and Education from the University of Nottingham focussing on online learning. At a time when the study of geography has never been more important, Bridgette is passionate about creating content which supports students in achieving their potential in geography and builds their confidence.