– Kellogg-Briand Peace Pact Program – NBC Red Network – January 15, 1936 – Gordon Skene Sound Collection –
An ambitious undertaking, The Kellogg-Briand Peace Pact which made War illegal was signed on August 27, 1928 and put in effect on July 24, 1929. This broadcast, which commemorates the ratification of the event is actually not the date is was signed, but rather a reminder (with the coming world tensions) that the World had outlawed war on January 15, 1936, seven years later.
Hoping to tie the United States into a system of protective alliances directed against a possible resurgence of German aggression, the French foreign minister, Aristide Briand, first suggested a bilateral nonaggression pact in the spring of 1927. The U.S. secretary of state, Frank B. Kellogg, prodded by the American “outlawry of war” movement and supported by those who were disappointed at the failure of the United States to join the League of Nations, proposed that the pact be converted into a general multilateral treaty, which the French accepted.
As a result of Kellogg’s proposal, nearly all the nations of the world eventually subscribed to the Kellogg-Briand Pact, agreeing to renounce war as an instrument of national policy and to settle all international disputes by peaceful means.
But like all of these well-meaning pronouncements, trying to avert and make good the idea that World War 1 was the “War to end all Wars”, good intentions went largely unnoticed, provisions in the agreement went unheeded and what had started out as a sincere effort at preserving peace became as worthless as the paper it was written on.
The Kellogg-Briand Peace was one attempt at maintaining peace in an unsure world. The League of Nations, precursor to The United Nations, headed into the same oblivion as war clouds over Europe loomed darker.
Here is that program from January 15, 1936 as broadcast over NBC.
You can download this and all our other clips when you subscribe to Past Daily from Patreon – give it a shot.
As you know, we’ve suspended indefinitely our ads in order to make Past Daily a better experience for you without all the distractions and pop-ups. Because of that, we’re relying more on your support through Patreon to keep us up and running every day. For as little as $5.00 a month you can make a huge difference as well as be able to download all of our posts for free (news, history, music). You’ll see a banner just below. Click on that and become a subscriber – it’s easy, painless and does a world of good.
