After the end of the Great War, the peace conference which was held in Paris from January 1919 to January 1920 and which led to the Treaty of Versailles was at the same time vindictive and idealistic. Germany was stripped of its colonies and severe restrictions were placed on the rebuilding of its army and navy. In this way, the peace agreement could be seen as a punishment for the defeated enemy, as well as a reduction in its status and strength. At the same time, Woodrow Wilson's vision of a general association of nations took shape in the League of Nations, founded in 1920. Its basic constitution was the Covenant, which was embodied in Versailles and other peace treaties. The fundamental principle of the League was collective security, for which its signatories committed themselves to seeking peaceful solutions to disputes and to assist any aggression. In other words, its main purpose was to prevent the outbreak of war by protecting member states from invasion, resolving border disputes, and encouraging countries to reduce their weapons. As such, it was new and potentially far-reaching; it could have turned into a powerful instrument of peace. Indeed, it resolved a number of practical disputes: between Finland and Sweden, Albania and Yugoslavia, Poland and Germany, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. He also established subordinate bodies to address particular problems, including the status of Danzig and the Saar, narcotics, refugees, and leprosy. To it were added a Permanent Court of International Justice and the International Labor Organization. Yet the League of Nations dashed the hopes of its founders. From the beginning it was missing teeth and most of its members were unwilling to see it develop. It thus became little more than a permanent version of the congresses (in Vienna, etc.) that had founded the old Concert of Europe. There was a danger of conflict between Finland and Sweden over which state owned the Aaland Islands in 1920. The League decided that the islanders would remain under Finnish control. However, the rights of the Swedish minority in the islands had to be protected. In this way the dispute was resolved peacefully and a military conflict was avoided. Upper Silesia was on the border between Germany and Poland and contained both Germans and Poles. When conflict seemed imminent in 1920, the League organized a plebiscite to decide whether to join Poland or Germany. Based on the results, the League decided to divide the area. One third went to Poland and two thirds to Germany in a peaceful settlement. The Austrian government faced economic disaster after the losses of the war and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles. The League sent a team of financial experts to help the Austrian government in 1922. As a result, they managed to save Austria from imminent bankruptcy and political collapse. A similar bailout act for Hungary followed the next year. In October 1925 Greek troops invaded Bulgaria. The League appealed to both countries to stop fighting, which they did. The League's commission of inquiry ruled in favor of the Bulgarians, while the Greeks had to pay compensation. One of the League's greatest successes has been its commitment to improving the lives of people in Europe and around the world, through the creation of numerous humanitarian agencies to address social and economic problems. The International Labor Organization has made numerous important contributions to improving people's working conditions. It persuaded its member countries to accept principles that included a daily work target of a maximum ofeight hours and a 48-hour work week. All workers had the right to join a trade union and to enjoy paid annual leave. Furthermore, no one under fifteen was required to work full time. Poisonous white lead has been banned from paint, eliminating health risks. The organization regularly publishes its findings and recommendations in order to increase pressure on governments around the world. The World Health Organization has had some success in helping countries control epidemics of life-threatening diseases. He initiated a global campaign to exterminate mosquitoes, which significantly reduced cases of malaria and yellow fever in the decades that followed. Even Russia, against the League, used the WHO to advise it on the prevention of the plague in Siberia. When a refugee crisis hit Turkey in 1922, hundreds of thousands of people had to be housed in refugee camps. The League acted quickly to eradicate cholera, smallpox, and dysentery in the camps. The League also helped repatriate approximately 400,000 prisoners held following the First World War. The League has also been successful in other areas of work. He successfully tackled slavery, arms trafficking and drug trafficking. It also made recommendations on maritime route signage and produced an international highway code for road users. The League's Minority Commission put pressure on governments that did not respect the rights of minority groups. Even in areas where it could not alleviate social injustice, the League carefully recorded what was happening and provided information on problems such as drug trafficking, prostitution, and slavery. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay However, given these successes, the League has also experienced failures, which have tended to be higher profile and of greater severity than its successes. There have been many cases in which international controversies have been a source of conflict for the League, putting it in a bad light. Lithuania's former capital, Vilna, contained many Poles. It was seized by the Polish army in 1919, prompting Lithuania's new government to ask the League of Nations for help. The League protested against the Polish action but Vilna remained under Polish rule. France, a key member of the League, supported Poland's claim to Vilna in exchange for Polish support in the event of a future attack by Germany. In 1923 an Italian general named Tellini working for the League of Nations Boundary Commission was assassinated in Greece. Mussolini, the Italian leader, demanded compensation of 50 million lire from the Greek government, ordered his guns to bomb the Greek island of Corfu, and demanded that the assassins be handed over. The Greek government did not know who the assassins were and appealed to the League. The League Council suggested that the Greeks pay compensation to the League, which in turn would return the money once the killers were found. Mussolini, however, had other plans. He wanted the Conference of Ambassadors to judge the case and not the League. He gets what he wants and the Conference decides that Greece will have to pay Italy what it asks for. These cases indicated that, although the League had established itself as an international organization capable of resolving disputes between smaller powers and promoting a wide range of humanitarian and economic activities, it was unable to address the aggressive actions of its core members . He had very limited power when it came to powerful countries like Italy. The League's authority was undermined by its own members.