The League of Nations: Legal, Political and Social Impact on Estonia

Abstract

The League of Nations, predecessor of the current United Nations, was the first world organization with a real impact on its members. The organization was created after the WWI in an attempt to establish a stable peace system among its members. Estonia, a country formed after the end of the war, was in a need of international recognition and protection. Hence, the membership was welcome as an anchor to liberty and freedom. This research analyses how the organization influenced Estonia and what were the major contributions of the country in the development of the League of Nations. The aim of the paper is to analyse the concrete impact of the membership on the position and recognition of Estonia as well as the influence of Estonia on the development of key activities of the League of Nations, in particular the questions of refugee protection and return of prisoners of war; protection of minorities (including the support to protection of rights of native American tribes) and attempts to establish the uniform global legal order. A special focus is given also to personal impact represented by the authority of Ragnar Nurkse.