Constantinople and the Battle for the League of Nations, 1919–1920

Constantinople and the Battle for the League of Nations, 1919–1920

Global Inclusivity Versus Western Imperialism

von Can Eyüp Çekiç

This book examines the forgotten proposal to make Constantinople the headquarters of the League of Nations after the First World War, in order to rethink the origins of modern international order. By tracing the debate between liberal internationalism and Western imperialism, it shows how global governance was shaped by power, geography, and ideology rather than universal principles. The author argues that the choice of Geneva as the League’s seat was not a neutral administrative decision, but a deeply political one. Focusing on the years from 1919 to 1920, the book reconstructs a critical moment when two competing visions of world order collided: the first, an inclusive, post-imperial internationalism advanced by figures such as David Davies, versus an imperial internationalism championed by policy-makers and the likes of Jan Smuts and Robert Henry Brand. At stake was whether the League would emerge as a genuinely global institution or as a reconfigured instrument of Western dominance. Drawing on pamphlets, Peace Conference minutes, parliamentary debates, and archival sources, the book offers a new perspective on postwar diplomacy, the League of Nations, and the spatial politics of international institutions.

This book examines the forgotten proposal to make Constantinople the headquarters of the League of Nations after the First World War, in order to rethink the origins of modern international order. By tracing the debate between liberal internationalism and Western imperialism, it shows how global governance was shaped by power, geography, and ideology rather than universal principles. The author argues that the choice of Geneva as the League’s seat was not a neutral administrative decision, but a deeply political one. Focusing on the years from 1919 to 1920, the book reconstructs a critical moment when two competing visions of world order collided: the first, an inclusive, post-imperial internationalism advanced by figures such as David Davies, versus an imperial internationalism championed by policy-makers and the likes of Jan Smuts and Robert Henry Brand. At stake was whether the League would emerge as a genuinely global institution or as a reconfigured instrument of Western dominance. Drawing on pamphlets, Peace Conference minutes, parliamentary debates, and archival sources, the book offers a new perspective on postwar diplomacy, the League of Nations, and the spatial politics of international institutions.

Can Eyüp Çekiç is Assistant Professor of History at Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University, Turkey. He is a historian of the late Ottoman Empire, specialising in modernisation, war and society, cosmopolitanism, and the intellectual and political history of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Previously, he studied and conducted research at Bilkent University, Turkey, and  the University of Oxford and SOAS University of London, UK.

Highlights

• Examines the overlooked proposal to make Constantinople the headquarters of the League of Nations after World War I Sheds light on the clash between idealism and imperialism in post-war diplomacy, focusing on key actors like Jan Smuts Draws from rich primary sources including pamphlets, Peace Conference minutes and parliamentary debates

Über den Autor

Can Eyüp Çekiç is Assistant Professor of History at Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University, Turkey. He is a historian of the late Ottoman Empire, specialising in modernisation, war and society, cosmopolitanism, and the intellectual and political history of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Previously, he studied and conducted research at Bilkent University, Turkey, and  the University of Oxford and SOAS University of London, UK.