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The Structure of the League of Nations

How the League of Nations was set up and organised: its formation and Covenant, its aims, its changing membership, the bodies that ran it, and the powers it had to stop aggression.

⏱️ 17 min 🎯 14 activities
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What you'll cover

A body for world peace

After the First World War, the winning countries set up the League of Nations to keep the peace. It was based in Geneva and worked to settle disputes, encourage disarmament and improve daily life around the world. This module looks at how the League was built: its rules, its membership, the parts that ran it, and the powers it had.

League words

Learn these four terms before you study how the League was organised.

Assembly vs Council

Two parts of the League made its decisions, but they worked differently.

Weak from the start

A top answer links the structure to its weaknesses. The strongest nation, the USA, never joined. The League had no army of its own, so it relied on members to act. And most decisions had to be unanimous, which made it slow to respond. These flaws were built in from the beginning.

Match the body

  • the Assembly
  • the Council
  • the Secretariat
  • the Court
  • met once a year with all members present
  • met often and settled major disputes
  • kept the records and ran the admin
  • gave rulings on legal disagreements

Match the term

  • disarmament
  • collective security
  • moral condemnation
  • the ILO
  • cutting down weapons and armies
  • members acting together against an aggressor
  • publicly telling a country it is wrong
  • an agency that improved working conditions

The missing power

Which strong nation never joined the League of Nations?

  • The USA.
  • Britain.
  • France.
  • Italy.

Aims of the League

Select the TWO aims of the League of Nations.

  • To keep peace and prevent another war.
  • To improve living and working conditions.
  • To build a larger British empire.
  • To make a profit for its members.

Answering a dispute

Put the ways the League could respond to an aggressor in order, gentlest first.

  • It tries to settle the dispute by talking
  • It publicly condemns the aggressor
  • It brings in economic sanctions
  • In theory, it could call on military force

Complete the story

The League was set up by the Treaty of _____. It was based in the Swiss city of _____. Every member could speak in the _____. The great power that refused to join was the _____. Germany was allowed to join in _____.

Versailles Geneva Assembly USA 1926 Council Covenant sanctions Britain 1920

When did Germany join?

The League of Nations began its work in 1920. Germany was allowed to join 6 years later. Add 6 to 1920 to find the year Germany joined. What is the year?

Find the working bodies

Tap the TWO bodies that did the day-to-day admin and legal work of the League.

  • the Secretariat
  • the Court
  • the Assembly
  • the Council

Which body deals with it?

Read each job and choose which part of the League would handle it.

  • A record of every meeting must be kept and the paperwork managed
  • Two countries have a legal disagreement over a border
  • A serious crisis needs a fast decision by the leading powers

Explain the structure

Describe the structure of the League of Nations and explain one weakness built into how it was set up.

  • Name the main parts of the League and what each one did
  • Explain the powers the League had to stop an aggressor
  • Explain one weakness built into its structure