The League of Nations faced many difficult situations.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Oct/Nov 2023). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1-4] 'League officials sailed to China to assess the situation.'
2. [1-4] 'They spent six weeks in the province and it took a year for them to complete their report.'
3. [1-4] 'In September 1932 they issued the Lytton report.'
4. [1-4] 'The League officials concluded that Japan was in the wrong and Manchuria should be returned to China.'
5. [1-4] 'The League voted in favour of the report in February 1933.'
6. [1-4] 'Sanctions were discussed but no action was taken.'
7. [2-3] 'Sanctions were not effective because member states were afraid of losing trade.'
8. [2-3] 'Britain and France put their own interests first.'
9. [2-3] 'Britain and France did not want to antagonise Mussolini and push him closer to Hitler.'
10. [2-3] 'Oil and coal were not included.'
11. [4-5] 'The sanctions which were applied to Italy did not stop the invasion of Abyssinia. Oil and coal were excluded from the list of prohibited items. Also the Suez Canal was still open to the Italian army. This was partly because Britain was afraid of Italian attacks on their territories in the Mediterranean.'
12. [6] Level 4 Explains TWO reasons (e.g., ineffective sanctions and national self-interest of member states).
13. [2-3] 'The League was generally successful in keeping the peace in the 1920s.'
14. [2-3] 'The League organised a plebiscite and partition of Upper Silesia.'
15. [2-3] 'Greece and Bulgaria fought over their borders and the League settled it successfully.'
16. [2-3] 'The Corfu Crisis was a failure for the League.'
17. [2-3] 'The Conference of Ambassadors undermined the League.'
18. [2-3] 'There were failures in the 1920s such as the failure to remove the Poles from Vilna.'
19. [2-3] 'Mosul was given to Iraq and Turkey accepted the decision.'
20. [4-6] 'The League was largely successful in the 1920s in the field of humanitarian aid. For example, the ILO made a resolution to an 8-hour working day with a 48-hour working week. The Slavery Commission freed 200 000 slaves in Sierra Leone and the Refugee Committee freed 400 000 prisoners of war. The Health Committee set up institutions to develop vaccines for leprosy and malaria and is regarded as the most successful part of the League as it still exists today as the WHO.'
21. [4-6] 'The League was unsuccessful in solving disputes where major powers were involved. For instance, in the Corfu Crisis the League appeared to give in to pressure from Mussolini and Greece was made to pay a huge amount of compensation for the murder of an Italian General after the invasion of Corfu by Italian forces. The League also failed in the Vilna dispute. When they asked Polish troops to withdraw from the Lithuanian city, they simply refused.'
22. [7-9] Level 4 Explanation of both sides (A L4 answer will have a minimum of three explanations (2 on one side; 1 on the other). Fuller explanation of one issue to be given two marks. An answer which only has one explanation on one side of the argument cannot be awarded more than 8.)
23. [10] Level 5 Explains with evaluation of 'how far' (As Level 4 plus evaluation.)