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ProQuest Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor, Mi 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. “A SACRED TRUST OF CIVILIZATION:” THE B MANDATES UNDER BRITAIN, FRANCE, AND THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS PERMANENT MANDATES COMMISSION, 1919-1939 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School, The Ohio State University By Paul J. Hibbeln, B.A, M A The Ohio State University 2002 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Carole Fink, Advisor Professor John Rothney C c u o a lg . 1C ______ Advisor Professor Michael Hogan Department of History Graduate Program Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 3072909 Copyright 2002 by Hibbeln, Paul Joseph All rights reserved. ___ ® UMI UMI Microform 3072909 Copyright 2003 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. copyright 2002, Paul Hibbeln Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT The study of the League of Nations Mandates System is not frequently explored in the historiography of international history and the history of imperialism. The framers of the League of Nations Covenant created it to supervise the governance of the German colonies and Ottoman territories lost by those powers in World War I, intending the mandates system to create a more humane form of imperialism France and Britain did not annex the territories they conquered, but agreed to administer them on behalf of the indigenous inhabitants and the League. The League created the Permanent Mandates Commission to oversee French and British administration in the new mandates. This study examines one part of the system, the B mandates. These include Tanganyika Territory, Togo, and the Cameroons. They were divided between France and Britain, which were to govern them, according to the mandate treaties, for the “material and moral well-being” of the African population. Paris and London, however, feared that the League’s influence over their governance would restrict policy choices, interfere with their imperial goals, and encourage Germany’s attempts to reclaim its colonies. They therefore resisted the Permanent Mandates Commission and over the course of the interwar period progressively attempted to circumscribe its ability to supervise the mandates. This applied to the diplomatic interactions between Geneva and the powers, the economic development of the African mandates, and social policies. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. This dissertation concludes that the League prevented the mandatory powers from using the mandates to as a tool to disguise their annexation of these African territories. However, League supervision failed to ensure administration on the basis of African interests. It also had only an occasional inpact on Anglo-French policies. Its long-term influence on imperialism was significant, but during the interwar period it was limited. iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. To My Parents iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I could not have completed this dissertation without the enormous support of my advisor and mentor Professor Carole Fink. Her tireless training and patience during the last seven years has been invaluable for this project and my education as a historian. She will continue to guide my study of history for many years to come. I would also like to thank Professors Michael Hogan and John Rothney for their wisdom and help during my graduate career at Ohio State. I do not think I could have completed my graduate education without the constant support and friendship of my colleagues in the OSU History Department. I would especially like to thank Matt Romaniello, as well as the other members of our small dissertation-writing group Aaron Retish, Jennifer Walton, and Matt Masur. My fellow advisees of Professor Fink, Jeff Giaque, Stuart Hilwig, LaGreda Gopp, and Rajiv Khanna, have also been the best of colleagues. Jennifer Anderson, Doug Palmer, John Stapleton, and the rest of the crowd in Dulles 239 and 235, as well as my many students, made my career at OSU a fantastic experience. Finally, I would like to thank the History Department staff, especially Joby Abernathy, who provided her shoulder and a spare cigarette many times through the years. I owe a great debt to the archivists and librarians who provided their services while I was researching this project. The archivists and staff of the League of Nations Archives in Geneva were extremely helpful and friendly, despite my French. Aurora Tangkeko and the other archivists at the UN archives in New York Gty were also wonderful. I would also like to thank the staffs of the Public Records Office in Kew, the Archives du Ministere des Affaires Etrangeres in Paris, the Centre des Archives d’Outre-Mer in Aix- en-Provence, and the Ohio State Library. Finally, I would like to thank my mom, dad, and brother Christopher. v Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. VITA 199 4 ......................................... B. A History, B. A. Economics, New College of the University of South Florida 1995 ......................................... M. A , Economics, Northwestern University 1996-9 7 ................................... Teaching Assistant, History, Ohio State University 1997......................................... Ph.D. Candidacy Examinations completed, History, Ohio State University 1997-2002 ............................... Small section instructor, History, Ohio State University PUBLICATIONS 1. Paul Hibbeln, “Supervising Imperialism- The League of Nations and petitions from Africans, 1920-1939.” Pnxeedirg ( f the Ohio Aatdeny<f History, (2002). 2. Paul Hibbeln and Carole Fink, “Imperialism in Africa, 1875-1914.” Exploring the European Past. Thompson Publishing. FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: History European International History Modem European History American Diplomatic History vi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS page ABSTRACT............................................................................................................................ ii DEDICATION.....................................................................................................................W ACKNOWLEDGMENTS....................................................................................................v VITA...................................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES................................................................................................................ ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS............................................................................................... x LIST OF MAPS.....................................................................................................................xi MAPS.................................................................................................................................... xii PERMANENT MANDATES COMMISSION MEMBERSHIP, 1920-1939.................xvii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION........................................................................................ 1 CHAPTER 2: THE MANDATE IDEA AND THE CREATION OF THE PERMANENT MANDATES COMMISSION, 1919-1922...............................................19 The German Colonial Legacy. ................................................................................. 20 Wartime Intentions versus the Mandate Idea ..........................................................21 Debate over the Mandates .......................................................................................29 Internationalists,