Stanowisko rządu brytyjskiego wobec reformy Ligi Narodów w 1936 roku

In the first months of 1936 Great Britain lost both its prestige in the international arena (unsuccessful measures undertaken in response to Italian aggression in Abyssinia) as well as real guarantees of security (remilitarization of the Rhineland, which was a violation of the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Treaties). No wonder then that the government of Stanley Baldwin endeavored to take over initiative and in March 1936 declared willingness to reform the League of Nations and the entire system of collective security. The article answers the following questions: Who in the British government presented London’s proposals in this context? How did London intend to implement them? To what extent did British diplomacy plan to act as leader in the process of working out the reform of the League of Nations? Anthony Eden’s address at the meeting of the Assembly of the League of Nations on 25th September 1936 supplied answers to the above questions. It communicated the attitude of British diplomacy to the League of Nations and the idea of collective security. However, many observers found the address bland and signaling British passivity. The article explains why the head of British diplomacy presented such wishy-washy proposals. The basic research method was analysis of the documents of the British government and Foreign Office.