Ninety years ago the League of Nations convened for the first time hoping to settle disputes by diplomacy not war. This book looks at how the League was shaped and the multifaceted body that emerged, and how it was used in ensuing years to counter territorial ambitions and restrict armaments, as well as its role in human rights and refugee issues. The failure of the League to prevent the Second World War would lead to its dissolution and the subsequent creation of the United Nations. Can the UN's fate be ascertained by reading the history of its predecessor?