Members of the LEAGUE OF NATIONS throughout its historyThe LEAGUE OF NATIONS came into existence, 10 January 1920; ceased to exist, 19 April 1946. SECRETARIES-GENERAL of the LEAGUE OF NATIONS The office of Secretary-General was, in essence, the closest thing the League of Nations had to a "political executive" of the type generally found in Parliamentary Democracies (indeed: in the earliest, heady days following the signing of the Covenant of the League attached to the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, there was much serious thought given that the Secretary-General of the League of Nations might well come to be considered "Chancellor of the World" or "Global Prime Minister", a view that was to be readily dashed in the give-and-take forced upon the League by the realities of post-World War I Great Power geopolitics): he was the head of the League Secretariat (in essence, the League's "Ministries"), which was the agency responsible for carrying out, as best it could, the formal decisions of League Council and/or Assembly. |
| Dates in office | Name | Home country | Notes |
| 10 Jan 1920 thru 30 June 1933 |
Sir James Eric Drummond | Great Britain | resigned to become British Ambassador to Italy; afterwards, 16th Earl of Perth. |
| 1 July 1933 thru 31 August 1940 |
Joseph Louis Anne Avenol | France | tendered his resignation shortly after the German occupation of France in late June 1940 (primarily because the pro-Axis "Vichy" government considered a French Secretary-General of the League of Nations to be a potential affront to Nazi Germany which had long repudiated the very Treaty of Versailles under which the League itself had been created). |
| 1 September 1940 thru 19 April 1946 |
Sean Lester | Eire (Ireland) | as Deputy Secretary-General, became "acting Secretary-General" upon the effectiveness of M. Avenol's resignation; remained as such throughout World War II (as the League Assembly, charged with electing the Secretary-General, held no sessions at the League headquarters in Geneva during that entire conflict); when the League Assembly finally reconvened, 8 April 1946, solely for purposes of disbanding the League of Nations and formally transferring its assets to the new United Nations Organization, Lester was officially elected Secretary-General retroactive to 1 September 1940 in honor of the services he rendered in keeping the League Secretariat intact till then. |
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[Each MEMBER-STATE is listed in alphabetical order within each section of this table by the name of the given country in English as used in diplomatic circles at the time of its earliest association with the LEAGUE] Allies and Associated Powers Belligerent during World War I who became Signatories to the
|
| League of Nations MEMBER-STATE |
later Name (if different from that at time of signing) |
date of deposit of its ratification of the COVENANT |
date of notice of withdrawal from the LEAGUE (if applicable) |
| the United States of AMERICA |
later generally known as the UNITED STATES of America |
failed to ratify the COVENANT | |
| BELGIUM | 10 January 1920 | ||
| BOLIVIA | 10 January 1920 | ||
| BRAZIL | 10 January 1920 | 12 June 1926 | |
| the BRITISH EMPIRE | on behalf of GREAT BRITAIN later generally known as the UNITED KINGDOM plus (signing individually): |
10 January 1920 | |
| CANADA | |||
| AUSTRALIA | |||
| SOUTH AFRICA | |||
| NEW ZEALAND | |||
| and INDIA | |||
| CHINA | 16 July 1920 | ||
| CUBA | 8 March 1920 | ||
| ECUADOR | failed to ratify the COVENANT | ||
| FRANCE | 10 January 1920 |
occupied by GERMANY, 22 June 1940; notice of withdrawal by
pro-Axis "Vichy" government, 19 April 1941: rescinded, 16 April 1943,
by anti-Axis "Free French" | |
| GREECE | 30 March 1920 | ||
| GUATEMALA | 10 January 1920 | 13 May 1936 | |
| HAITI | 30 June 1920 | 8 April 1942 | |
| the HEJAZ | incorporated into what became SA'UDI ARABIA |
failed to ratify the COVENANT | |
| HONDURAS | 3 November 1920 | 22 June 1936 | |
| ITALY | 10 January 1920 | 11 December 1937 | |
| JAPAN | 10 January 1920 | 27 March 1933 | |
| LIBERIA | 30 June 1920 | ||
| NICARAGUA | 3 November 1920 | 26 June 1936 | |
| PANAMA | 10 January 1920 | ||
| PERU | 10 January 1920 | 8 April 1939 | |
| POLAND | 10 January 1920 | ||
| PORTUGAL | 8 April 1920 | ||
| RUMANIA | later spelled as ROMANIA |
4 September 1920 | 11 July 1940 |
| the SERB-CROAT- SLOVENE State |
'old' [pre-1991] YUGOSLAVIA |
10 February 1920 | |
| SIAM | THAILAND | 10 January 1920 | |
| Czecho-SLOVAKIA | later written as CZECHOSLOVAKIA |
10 January 1920 | annexed by GERMANY: 15 March 1939 |
| URUGUAY | 10 January 1920 | ||
Neutral Nations during World War I
|
| League of Nations MEMBER-STATE |
later Name (if different from that at time of accession) |
date of accession to the LEAGUE |
date of notice of withdrawal from the LEAGUE (if applicable) |
| the ARGENTINE (or: the 'Argentine Republic') |
ARGENTINA | 18 July 1919 | retired from first League Assembly, 4 December 1920; returned to full League participation, 1933: never formally gave notice of withdrawal |
| CHILE | 4 November 1919 | 2 June 1938 | |
| COLOMBIA | 16 February 1920 | ||
| DENMARK | 8 March 1920 | occupied by GERMANY: 9 April 1940 | |
| HOLLAND | the NETHERLANDS | 9 March 1920 | |
| NORWAY | 5 March 1920 | ||
| PARAGUAY | 26 December 1919 | 24 February 1935 | |
| PERSIA | IRAN | 21 November 1919 | |
| [SAN] SALVADOR | EL SALVADOR | 10 March 1920 | 10 August 1938 |
| SPAIN | 10 January 1920 | original notice of withdrawal, 8 September 1926: rescinded, 22 March 1928; final notice of withdrawal, 9 May 1939 | |
| SWEDEN | 9 March 1920 | ||
| SWITZERLAND | 8 March 1920 | ||
| VENEZUELA | 3 March 1920 | 11 July 1938 |
Additional Members of the LEAGUE
|
| League of Nations MEMBER-STATE |
later Name (if different from that at time of admission) |
date of admission to the LEAGUE |
date of notice of withdrawal from the LEAGUE (if applicable) |
| ABYSSINIA | ETHIOPIA | 28 September 1923 | |
| AFGHANISTAN | 27 September 1934 | ||
| ALBANIA | 16 December 1920 | annexed by ITALY: 12 April 1939 | |
| AUSTRIA | 16 December 1920 | annexed by GERMANY: 13 March 1938 | |
| BULGARIA | 16 December 1920 | ||
| COSTA RICA | 16 December 1920 | 24 December 1924 | |
| ECUADOR | 28 September 1934 | ||
| EGYPT | 26 May 1937 | ||
| ESTONIA | 22 September 1921 |
occupied by the USSR: 16 June 1940; formally incorporated into the Soviet Union, 3 August 1940 | |
| FINLAND | 16 December 1920 | ||
| GERMANY | 8 September 1926 | 21 October 1933 | |
| HUNGARY | 18 September 1922 | 11 April 1939 | |
| IRAQ | 3 October 1932 | ||
| the IRISH FREE STATE |
EIRE (or: the 'Irish Republic'); commonly called IRELAND |
10 September 1923 | |
| LATVIA | 22 September 1921 |
occupied by the USSR: 16 June 1940; formally incorporated into the Soviet Union, 3 August 1940 | |
| LITHUANIA | 22 September 1921 |
occupied by the USSR: 16 June 1940; formally incorporated into the Soviet Union, 3 August 1940 | |
| LUXEMBURG | later spelled as LUXEMBOURG |
16 December 1920 | |
| MEXICO | 12 September 1931 | ||
| SANTO DOMINGO | the DOMINICAN REPUBLIC | 29 September 1924 | |
| TURKEY | 18 July 1932 | ||
| the UNION of SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS [USSR] |
18 September 1934 | expelled from the LEAGUE: 14 December 1939 |