Smartass Interwar

Your Smartass List of Interwar Specialist Terms
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Versailles The palace about 14 miles outside Paris where the Treaty of Versailles was signed - although the delegates lived and did their negotiations in the hotels of Paris. Armistice The formal signed truce - which came into force at 11am on 11 November 1918 - which ended the fighting in the First World War. The Germans made a number of promises, many of which eventually got into the Treaty of Versailles: but it is important that they thought this was for the Armistice ONLY - they thought the Treaty of Versailles would be based on the Fourteen Points. Geddes Sir Eric Geddes: a British MP who campaigned for the 1918 general election on the promise that he would make sure that the Peace Treaty would 'make Germany pay'. Brest-Litovsk The peace treaty signed between Germany and the defeated Russians in 1917. It was VERY harsh - Germany took huge amounts of land and most Russia's industrial areas - delegates at Versailles used it as an excuse to argue that Germany, too, should be treated without mercy. Tiger The nickname for Clemenceau - who was known as a vicious and tenacious person. he hated Germany for defeating France in 1871, as well as for the First World War. His first aim was to make sure that Germany was weakened so much that the Germans could never threaten France again. His second aim was revenge. Wilson Woodrow Wilson: the President of the USA. He wanted the Peace Treaty to end war and solve the ills of the world. He was not a very good practical politician, and lost control in America while he was away negotiating the peace - with the result that America later refused to sign the Treaty of Versailles. Lloyd George David Lloyd George: Prime Minister of Great Britain. He was a brilliant practical politician, and his Fontainbleau Memorandum managed to find a compromise between Clemenceau and Wilson - Lloyd George joked that he was 'seated between Napoleon and Jesus Christ'. As a result, Britain did best out of the Peace, getting rid of the Germany navy and adding lots of German colonies to the British empire. Orlando The most important leaders at the Treaty of Versailles were Wilson, Clemenceau and Lloyd George -the 'Big Three'. However, Vittorio Orlando, the Prime Minister of Italy, was also important. Orlando came to Paris wanting huge amounts of land from the Austrian Empire, and became angry when the Big Three wouldn't give him them. As result, Orlando left the negotiations early, and - soon after the Treaty was signed - a group of Italians attacked and capture the Yugoslavian port of Fiume. Fourteen Points Fourteen Points The terms proposed by President Wilson of the USA on 8 January 1918, as a basis for the settlement of World War I. The main points were the creation of the League of Nations, open diplomacy (no secret treaties); freedom of the seas; removal of trade barriers; international disarmament; weakening of 'empires'. Wilson was obliged to compromise on many of the points in the Treaty. Disarmament One of the 14 Points. The Germans complained that they were expected to disarm, but not the victorious powers. Self-determination The right of a country to rule itself. Different nations states were set up by the Treaties - Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia. the Germans complained that everyone got self-determination but them - the 'corridor' and Posen were given to Poland although Germans lived there, and Germany was forbidden to unite with Austria. Just Lloyd George didn't want a vengeful treaty, or one that was too weak. His description for the treaty 'in the middle' was 'just' = giving justice. Mirrors The Treaty was signed in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. The German were summoned in and ordered to sign. Covenant The first 26 terms of the Treaty of Versailles made up the Covenant of the League of Nations - the aims and remit of the League, which countries which joined the League promised to keep. 440 The number of clauses in the Final Treaty of Versailles. There were sections on the boundaries of Germany, German colonies, Germany's military naval and air forces, prisoners of war, penalties and reparations (Clause 231 was in this section), economic clauses (rules about trade, shipping, ports and railways etc), the International Labour Organisation of the League of Nations. Reparations The money that Germany was supposed to pay to repair the damage done during the war. Clause 231 stated that Germany was liable to ALL the cost of the war. However, the Big Three argued violently about the size of reparations (France wanted a huge amount/ Britain did not want a figure that damaged Germany's ability to trade). The Treaty of Versailles kicked back decision as to the actual sum of the League, which did not fix reparations (of £6.6 billion) until May 1921. The Germans refused to pay, and France, Britain and Belgium had to invade the Ruhr (March-Spet 1921) to force Germany to pay. 231 The Clause which blamed Germany 'for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies'. Originally inserted simply as a pre-statement giving the Allies the right to collect reparations, the clause was interpreted as saying that Germany had caused the war. the Germans denied this, and in 1927 President Hindenburg officially denied the 'war-guilt' clause. Anschluss Union with Austria - denied under the Treaty of Versailles. This breached the principle of self-determination, since the Austrians were a Germanic people. Hitler broke this in 1938. Demilitarised The area on the east bank of the River Rhine, 50 miles wide at its narrowest, and including all of the Ruhr - i.e. the area of Germany next to France - into which Germany was not allowed to send any troops. When the Germans sent in their soldiers to stop rioting in April 1920, French troops invaded the Rhineland to drive them out. However, in 1936 Hitler put troops back into the Rhineland. Corridor The strip of German land which connected Poland to the Baltic Sea (also Danzig, which was made a free city under League of Nations control) - not that this was against the rpincple of self-determination, since the people who lived in the corridor were Germans. The 'Polish Corridor' separated East Prussia from the rest of Germany. In 1939, Hitler invaded Poland and reconquered the corridor, thus starting World War II. Alsace-Lorraine the Treaty of Versailles gave back Alsace-Lorraine to France, 'recognising the moral obligation to redress the wrong done by Germany in 1871 both to the rights of France and to the wishes of the population of Alsace and Lorraine'. Deutsche Zeitung The German newspaper which said: 'The disgraceful Treaty is being signed today. Don’t forget it! We will never stop until we win back what we deserve.' Scheidemann The German Chancellor in 1919 - he resigned rather than agree to the treaty (as did the whole German government). Brockdorff-Rantzau The leader of the German delegation which went to Versailles in June 1919. He refused to accept the treaty, and submitted a refutation which threw the Allies negotiating teams into chaos. When the Germans were told that they must accept the Treaty as delivered, Brockdorff-Rantzau resigned. In the end, the treaty was signed by two compete nonentities - Herman Muller (the new Foreign Minister) and Johannes Bell (the new Minister of Transport and the Colonies). Muller resigned soon after; the treaty, of course, abolished Bell's post of colonial minister (Germany had no more colonies to run) Senate The American 'parliament'. While Wilson (who was leader of the Democratic party) was away, the Republicans took power (led by Cabot Lodge). Wilson had a stroke fighting the election and had to retire from politics, and the Democrats lost the election. Consequently, the Senate refused to ratify the treaty or join the League. Nicolson Harold Nicolson: one of the British delegates at Versailles who went with high hopes of ending war and making a better world, who came back disillusioned by the vindictiveness of the French. His book, Peacemaking (1919), declared the treaty 'neither just nor wise' and - together with Keynes book Economic Consequences of the Peace (1919) - helped to undermine British confidence in the Treaty. This, in the 1930s, helped the people who argued for appeasement. Keynes John Maynard Keynes: one of the British delegates at Versailles who went with high hopes of ending war and making a better world, who came back disillusioned by the reparations clauses of the treaty. His book, Economic Consequences of the Peace (1919) argued that germany could not afford to pay reparations, which would destroy not only Germany's bu the whole of Europe's economy by damaging trade. Together with Nicolson's book Peacemakers (1919) - helped to undermine British confidence in the Treaty. This, in the 1930s, helped the people who argued for appeasement. Saint Germain The treaty (Sept 1919) with Austria. It mirrored the Treaty of Versailles, setting out boundaries, reducing Austria's armies, and requiring reparations. Neuilly The treaty (1919) with Bulgaria. It mirrored the Treaty of Versailles, setting out boundaries, reducing Bulgaria's armies, and requiring reparations. Trianon The treaty (June 1920) with Hungary. It mirrored the Treaty of Versailles, setting out boundaries, reducing Hungary's armies, and requiring reparations. Sèvres The treaty (1920) with Turkey. It broke up the Turkish empire (giving most of it as mandates to Britain or France), gave control of the Straits to a League of Nations Commission, rewrote Turkey's laws, reduced Turkey's armed forces and set reparations. Accepted by the Sultan, it was rejected by the givernment of Kemel Attaturk, and the Turks fought successfully against it, forcing the Allies to renegotiate at the Treaty if Lausanne (1923) - which gave all of Asia Minor to turkey, cancelled reparations and allowed Turkey to keep its armed forces. Geneva The Headquarters of the League of Nations Collective Security The basic idea behind the League of Nations - that, if the whole world agreed to protect a nation's boundaries and rights, that nation would not have to keep armies and fight wars to protect itself. Community of Power One of the basic ideas behind the League of Nations - that, if the whole world agreed together to protect a nation's boundaries and rights, that it would have a collective moral power which would stop any country from attacking another country. Moral Persuasion One of the basic ideas behind the League of Nations. It was thought that the weight of world opinion against nation which behaved improperly would 'force' them to change wrongs or end wars. Of course, big countries such as Italy, Japan or Germany just ignored the League's 'moral' influence. Condemnation The mechanism of 'moral persuasion'. The League would 'condemn' a nation which acted badly or illegally. It was thought that the weight of world opinion against nation which behaved improperly would 'force' them to change wrongs or end wars. Of course, big countries such as Italy, Japan or Germany just ignored the League's 'moral' influence. Arbitration Where nations were in dispute, the League could offer 'arbitration' - it would offer to judge the case between the two. The most famous case of League arbitration was in 1921 when a League enquiry found that the Aaland Islands should belong to Finland, not Sweden, and both Finland and Sweden accepted the decision. Sanctions One of the powers of the League to force a country to do as it wished - it could ban trade. The League imposed sanctions on Italy in 1935 (it banned arms sales, loans of money and exports of rubber or metal). However, sanctions on trade harmed the countries of the League as much as the offending country - Britain refused to ban sales of coal to Italy because it would have out British miners out of work. Assembly The main decision-making body of the League. It met once a year. Decisions had to be unanimous (a major weakness). Council of the League A smaller committee of important members of the League (Britain, France, Italy, Japan and after 1926 Germany + some other countries elected by the Assembly). It met five times a year and in emergencies. It dealt with disputes between countries. Conference of Ambassadors An informal meeting of the main countries of the League (Britain, France, Italy, Japan) which met to decide what it wanted the League to decide. Sometimes it would overturn decisions of the League. Agencies The economic and social agencies of the League, including the Court of International Justice, the International Labour Organisation, and the Health, Slavery, Refugees and Mandates (looked after former German colonies) Commissions. Whereas the peace-keeping power of the League was not very good, the Agencies did VERY good work and the ILO and the Health Commission still exist today. Secretariat Kept the records and prepared the agendae of the meetings. It was muddled and too small, which delayed matters and was a major weakness of the League. Keystone In March 1920 the Senate rejected the Treaty of Versailles by 49 votes to 35. A famous British cartoon of the time showed 'Uncle Sam' asleep by a bridge from which the central stone - the 'keystone' - was missing. America's failure to join the League meant that it never had enough power to work as it should. Aaland A success of the League: in 1921, the League said that the Aaland Islands in the Baltic Sea should belong to Finland; Sweden and Finland agreed. Mosul A success of the League: in 1924 the Turks demanded Mosul, a part of Iraq (a British mandate). The League declared that Mosul belonged to Iraq; Turkey agreed. Vilna A failure of the League: in 1920, the Poles captured Vilna (the capital of Lithuania). The League ordered Poland to withdraw, but Poland refused. The League could do nothing. Memel A failure of the League: in 1923, Lithuania seized Memel, a German port under League control. The League told Lithuania to leave, but the Conference of Ambassadors gave Memel to Lithuania. Washington In 1921 the USA, Britain, France and Japan signed a naval agreement to respect each others' rights - since they should have been working through the League's disarmament commission, this was seen as undermining the League of Nations, and signalled the beginning of its failure. Locarno An agreement in 1925 between France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy and Belgium to respect each others' borders. Since Germany signed voluntarily, this was seen as a replacement of the Treaty of Versailles, and signalled the beginning of its failure. Disarmament All attempts by the League to get disarmament failed. A disarmament conference failed in 1923 because Britain objected. It took until 1931 to arrange another conference, which was wrecked by Germany, which demanded equal armaments with Britain and France. Geneva Protocol All attempts by the League to get disarmament failed. In 1925 a mutual promise not to use poison gas or germ warfare - failed because Britain changed its mind at the last minute and refused to sign it! The USA and Japan also refused to sign. Corfu Dispute between Italy and Greece in 1923. When an Italian general called Tellini was killed on League duty in Greece, Italy invaded the island of Corfu - and ignored a league request to leave. The Conference of Ambassadors intervened, and ordered Greece to pay compensation to Italy, after which Mussolini withdrew his forces. Tellini The Italian general killed in Greece, whose death precipitated the Corfu crisis. Mussolini The fascist ruler of Italy who - although Italy was on the League's Council - ignored the League over Corfu and Abyssinia Bulgaria The Greeks invaded Bulgaria following a border skirmish in which a few Greek solders were killed. Bulgaria asked the League to help, and the Council of the League condemned the Greeks, and told them to leave Bulgaria. The Bulgarian government sent orders to its army not to fight back and the Greeks left Bulgaria. This is just about the only occasion where events went as they were supposed to. Kellogg Frank Billings Kellogg (from the cornflake family) was an American lawyer who, through the League and with the French Foreign Minister Aristide Brian, arranged the Kellogg-Briand Pact - a treaty, signed by 65 nations, promising to end war. Manchoukuo In 1932, the Japanese army invaded Manchuria and threw out the Chinese. They set up their own government there and called it Manchoukuo, thus precipitating the Manchurian Crisis. Lytton Victor, 2nd Earl Lytton: responding to the Manchurian crisis, the League sent Lord Lytton to study the problem. His report - which took a year to write - blamed the Japanese, as a result of which the League asked the Japanese to leave, and Japan walked out of the League of Nations and attacked China. Simon John Simon, British foreign secretary during the Manchurian crisis. After Japan left the League, Britain and France were unwilling to commit their armed forces to defend Manchuria or even to impose sanctions - although they declared that they believed that all disputes could be solved by negotiation. A famous cartoon by the cartoonist Low showed Japan trampling all over the League, whilst Simon powdered her nose. Wal-Wal A small village on the border of Abyssinia (Ethiopia) and Italian Somaliland - a clash here in 1935 precipitated the Abyssinian crisis, on the pretext of which Mussolini invaded Abyssinia. Haile Selassie The emperor of Abyssinia who appealed, unsuccessfully, to the League to stop the Italian. 'Is the League going to set a terrible precedent by bowing to force', he asked the Assembly of the League. The League set sanctions on arms, loans and metal, but nothing else. Britain did not close the Suez canal, which allowed Mussolini to continue to supply his armies in Abyssinia. Hoare-Laval Although Britain and France condemned Italy in public, in private Samuel Hoare (British foreign secretary) and Pierre Laval (the French Prime Minister) met and made an agreement in October 1935 to allow Italy to keep Abyssinia. When it became known publicly there was a great outcry and Laval had to resign. It was the start of the growth of public opinion against appeasement. Depression After a stock market crash on Wall Street (the US stock exchange in New York), there was a world-wide depression. The Great Depression was the cause of a lot of problems in foreign policy. This brought Hitler to power in Germany, and allowed the Japanese army to dominate the government in Japan. Meanwhile, France, Britain and America were economically weakened and less able to resist aggression. Imperial Defence Britain's main problem during the 1930s was defending her empire. One of the reasons for appeasement was that Britain couldn't afford to defend her empire in the east against Japan at the same time as fighting a war against Germany in the west. Franco The leader of the Spanish fascists, who in February 1939 finally defeated the Spanish communists and established a fascist regime in Spain. Franco was supported by German planes and soldiers. This was one of the reasons that britain abandoned the policy of appeasement. Greater Germany One of Hitler's aims, expressed in Mein Kampf in 1924 - the uniting of all German peoples into one country. Lebensraum A German word meaning 'room to live' - another of Hitler's aims, expressed in Mein Kampf in 1924. By this, Hitler meant conquering land in eastern Europe (Poland and Russia) to supply Germany with space for colonisation, food and raw materials. Communism The opposite belief to fascism. Communists believe that the state should won all the means of production, and that each should contribute to the general needs of society, which will be supplied through the state. Fascists believe that a strong central government should rule with an iron fist, but that the Germanic 'Aryan' people are innately superior to others, who should be their slaves. Mein Kampf Hitler's autobiography, which he write in 1924, setting out his beliefs and aims. Re-armament Begun by Hitler in 1933, in direct contravention of the Treaty of Versailles, in secret, and by tricks - such as training pilots in gliders under the guise of the League for Air Sports, and youths in the National Labour Service drilling with spades. Sudetenland The area on the border of Bohemia in Czechoslovakia where many Germans lived and which was claimed by Germany in 1938. It was also the area which contained most of Czech industry and all the Czech defences. Berchtesgaden The first meeting between Chamberlain and Hitler during the Sudetenland crisis (15 September 1938). Hitler promised that this was the ‘last problem to be solved’, and Chamberlain decided Hitler was ‘a man who can be relied upon’ - he handed over the Sudetenland to Hitler. Bad Godesberg Having secured the agreement of France and Czechoslovakia to the Berchtesgaden agreement, this was the second meeting between Chamberlain and Hitler during the Sudetenland crisis (22 September 1938). Hitler increased his demands - the Sudetenland had to be handed over immediately, and other Czech lands had to be given to Poland and Hungary. Chamberlain refused, and war seemed likely. Munich The third meeting between Chamberlain and Hitler during the Sudetenland crisis (29 September 1938). Chamberlain, Mussolini and Daladier gave the Sudetenland to Germany. the Czechs were not even allowed into the room. On 30 September, Chamberlain returned to England with his famous piece of paper. ‘I believe it is peace for our time’, he told the cheering crowd. Daladier The Prime Minister of France who, with Chamberlain, appeased Hitler. Appeasement For supporters of Chamberlain, trying to negotiate with Hitler; for critics of Chamberlain, supinely giving a bully what he wanted. Chamberlain The Prime Minister of Britain who appeased Hitler. Great issues At Bad Godesberg, Chamberlain stood up to Hitler over the Sudetenland, but then he decided that Czechoslovakia was just ‘a quarrel in a far-away country between people of whom we know nothing’. 'War is a fearful thing', he told the British people in a famous speech, 'and we must be very clear before we embark on it that it is really the great issues that are at stake'. Goose-step The Nazi way of marching, throwing up the legs very high. A famous cartoon of 1936 showed a Nazi goose wandering into the Rhineland. 1000-year Reich Upon the conquest of Poland in September 1939, Hitler declared that he had created a 'thousand-year Reich (empire)'. It lasted, in fact, 6 years. Danzig A free city in the Polish Corridor, German until he First World War. In 1939, Hitler claimed it back, and sent 2000 Nazi stormtroopers to stir up trouble. people realised that he was going to march in (as he had done in Austria and the Sudentenland), and Chamberlain promised to defend Poland if Hitler invavded. Duff Cooper The First Lord of the Admiralty, who resigned because of Chamberlain's Munich agreement with Hitler; this was the first step in Britain abandoning appeasement in 1938-9, because it showed the British people that Chamberlain did not have the support of the armed forces for his policy of appeasement. Kristallnacht The Nazi attacks on German Jews on 8 November 1938 (called Crystal Night because of the huge amounts of broken glass glittering in the gutters). It was another factor in Britain abandoning appeasement, because it showed just what an evil regime Chamberlain was appeasing. National Register Although officially at peace with Hitler, Britain was preparing for war even in 1938. The National register (1 December 1938) drew up a list of who would do what during a war with Germany. Civil Defence Act The Civil Defence Act (5 April 1939) unveiled plans to evacuate children to the countryside in the event of a war. Military Training Act Introduced compulsory conscription (1 May 1939). Pact of Steel Hitler was preparing for war too - on 22 May 1939 he made a war alliance with Mussolini. Halifax Lord Halifax - the British Foreign Secretary who favoured appeasement of Hitler. He deliberately procrastinated over the proposed alliance with Russia in 1939, with the result that Stalin made the alliance with Hitler instead. Reginald Ranfurly Plunckett-Ernle-Erle-Drax The minor foreign office official who was sent to Russia by boat, who did not have authority to make any decisions, and who finally made the Russians decide to ally with Germany. Ribbentrop-Molotov Joachim Ribbentrop was the Nazi Foreign Minister and Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov the Soviet Foreign Minister who together agreed the Nonaggression Treaty of 23 August 1939. Under the treaty both countries agreed to refrain from acts of aggression against each other if either went to war. Secret clauses allowed for the partition of Poland. This gave Hitler the freedom to invade Poland.

Your Smartass List of

Interwar Specialist Terms