What was International Diplomacy Like in the 1920s? (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE History)

• Limit Japanese imperialism

• Ease tensions in the Asia Pacific region

• Work towards naval disarmament

The USA,

Britain,

Italy and Japan

An additional agreement made with Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal and China

• Restrictions on the building of battleships, battlecruisers and aircraft carriers

• Britain and the USA limited to ships weighing up to 533,000 tonnes

• Japan limited to ships weighing up to 320,000 tonnes

• The first treaty to encourage disarmament

• Britain, France, Japan and Italy attended as individual countries rather than League representatives

• Did not restrict the number of ships. This encouraged the development of lighter warships

• Rebuild both countries' reputations after the First World War

• Resolve the USSR’s issues with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1917)

Germany and the USSR

• End of the USSR’s reparations to Germany

• Trading agreements between the two countries

• The USSR would allow German soldiers to train secretly. The USSR also allowed German  rearmament factories

• Friendly diplomatic relations established

• Angered the Allies due to Germany making alliances without permission

• The treaty was conducted secretly, undermining the League of Nations

• Improve the international reputation of Germany

• To avoid conflict with France. Their relationship had worsened after the French invasion of the Ruhr in 1923

Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Belgium

• France and Germany promised to keep peace with each other

• Germany accepted its western borders as stated in the 1919 Treaty of Versailles

• All members promised to keep the Rhineland demilitarised

• To explore the possibility of admitting Germany into the League of Nations

• The acceptance of the Treaty of Versailles infuriated the extremist parties in Germany

• Germany entered into the treaty as an equal to the Allies. It was not a diktat

• In September 1926, Germany became a member of the League. Additional countries in the League strengthened it as an organisation

• Hyperinflation in 1923 led the Allies to consider reducing Germany’s reparation bill

• Improve German industry and trading

Germany and the USA

Created by Charles G. Dawes, an American banker

• The temporary reduction of reparations to £50 million a year

• A guarantee of US bank loans for German industry

• Reparations became more manageable and trust between the Allies and Germany improved

• Stresemann called off the passive resistance in the Ruhr and France agreed to leave

• The US gave $25 billion to German industry from 1924 to 1930

• Germany’s industrial output increased by 50% between 1923 and 1928

• Generally accepted in Germany but infuriated the extremist parties

• Provide further assistance to allow Germany to pay back its reparations

Germany and the USA

Created by Owen Young, an American banker

• Reduction of the total reparations bill from £6.6 billion to £2 billion

• The Allies states that reparations had to be fully repaid by 1988

• The German government reduced taxes. Citizens could spend more, boosting German industry and creating more jobs

• Improved relations between Germany and the Allies

• France decided to leave the Rhineland in 1930

• Outraged Germany's extremist parties. Hitler stated that the extension of the reparations deadline was “passing on the penalty to the unborn”