The title of the second unit of the Core Content Option B in the CIE History IGCSE is 'To what extent was the League of Nations a success?' This unit investigates the role, structure and success of the League of Nations in the 1920s and 1930s.

This unit focuses on international relations and the way in which different nation states interacted, and the change, continuity and significance of their relationships over time. You will study their priorities, agreements, disagreements and the key events that affected them.

This unit gives you the information you need to understand the following:

• ❖ The success and failures of the League in the 1920s.
• ❖ How far weaknesses in the League's organisation made failure inevitable.
• ❖ How far the Depression made the work of the League more difficult.
• ❖ The success and failures of the League in the 1930s.

Topics covered in this course include:

• ❖ The birth of the League.
• ❖ The structure and organisation of the League.
• ❖ The successes and failures of the League commissions.
• ❖ Successes and failures of the League in settling the international disputes of the 1920s.
• ❖ The impact of the Depression on the work of the League.
• ❖ The Treaty of St Germain with Austria.
• ❖ The failures of the League in the 1930s, including the Manchurian Crisis, the Abyssinian Crisis and the World Disarmament Conference.

Key individuals studied in this course include:

• ❖ Woodrow Wilson.
• ❖ Fridtjof Nansen.
• ❖ Ludwik Rajchman.
• ❖ Albert Thomas.
• ❖ Lord Lytton.
• ❖ Benito Mussolini.
• ❖ Haile Selassie.

This unit usually appears as one of four possible questions in Option B Core Content International Relations Since 1919 on the Paper 1 exam, of which you must complete two. Therefore, you will answer one question on the success of the League of Nations, if this appears as an option on your exam paper. The question is comprised of 3 sections - a, b and c. However, check with your teacher to find out whether this unit will appear on the Paper 2 source paper in your exam.

• ❖ On the Paper 1 exam, you may choose to complete a three-part question on this topic, which will be divided into sections a, b and c.
• ❖ Question a is worth 4 marks. This question requires you to describe key features of the time period. You will be asked to recall 2 relevant points and support them with details or provide at least four relevant points without supporting detail.
• ❖ Question b is worth 6 marks. This question requires you to explain a key event or development. You will need to identify two reasons, support those reasons with relevant factual detail and then explain how the reasons made the event occur.
• ❖ Question c is worth 10 marks. This question requires you to construct an argument to support and challenge an interpretation stated in the question. You will need to have a minimum of three explanations in total (two on one side and one on the other), fully evaluate the argument and come to a justified conclusion. You will have the opportunity to show your ability to explain and analyse historical events using 2nd order concepts such as causation, consequence, change, continuity, similarity and difference.
• ❖ If this topic appears on Paper 2, you will answer six questions on a range of source material about this topic. Check with your teacher to find out your Paper 2 topic.