ABSTRACT
The Treaty of Versailles established an armistice rather than a peace. The war had been enormously consequential, yet had not been decisive in terms of determining Germany’s place in the international system. Instead, the creation of the League of Nations attempted to establish a multilateral forum for the peaceful resolution of international disputes, while arms-limitations sought to neutralize the menace to peace caused by international arms races. None of the major powers believed that Versailles had provided for a durable peace; all made provisions for the prosecution of a future war through innovations with new weapons and military doctrine. As the Bolsheviks consolidated power in the Soviet Union, Italian and German fascism emerged as virulent challenges to parliamentary democracy. At Locarno, Britain, France, and Germany sought to base relations among them on a foundation of equality, yet achieved only France’s diplomatic isolation in the event of a recidivist Germany. The year 1931 was pivotal to future events. Japan, whose government had sided with the Entente during WWI, yet had not secured the position of diplomatic equality it sought at Versailles, launched a military incursion into Manchuria, rupturing international peace and exposing the impotence of the League.
