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Plowshares into Swords
Weaponized Knowledge, Liberal Order, and the League of Nations
Language:
English
Published/Copyright:
2022
About this book
An in-depth look at how the ideas formulated by the interwar League of Nations shaped American thinking on the modern global order.
In Plowshares into Swords, David Ekbladh recaptures the power of knowledge and information developed between World War I and World War II by an international society of institutions and individuals committed to liberal international order and given focus by the League of Nations in Geneva. That information and analysis revolutionized critical debates in a world in crisis. In doing so, Ekbladh transforms conventional understandings of the United States’ postwar hegemony, showing that important elements of it were profoundly influenced by ideas that emerged from international exchanges. The League’s work was one part of a larger transnational movement that included the United States and which saw the emergence of concepts like national income, gross domestic product, and other attempts to define and improve the standards of living, as well as new approaches to old questions about the role of government. Forged as tools for peace these ideas were beaten into weapons as World War II threatened. Ekbladh recounts how, though the US had never been a member of the organization, vital parts of the League were rescued after the fall of France in 1940 and given asylum at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. However, this presence in the US is just one reason its already well-regarded economic analyses and example were readily mobilized by influential American and international figures for an Allied “war of ideas,” plans for a postwar world, and even blueprints for the new United Nations. How did this body of information become so valuable? As Ekbladh makes clear, the answer is that information and analysis themselves became crucial currencies in global affairs: to sustain a modern, liberal global order, a steady stream of information about economics, politics, and society was, and remains, indispensable.
In Plowshares into Swords, David Ekbladh recaptures the power of knowledge and information developed between World War I and World War II by an international society of institutions and individuals committed to liberal international order and given focus by the League of Nations in Geneva. That information and analysis revolutionized critical debates in a world in crisis. In doing so, Ekbladh transforms conventional understandings of the United States’ postwar hegemony, showing that important elements of it were profoundly influenced by ideas that emerged from international exchanges. The League’s work was one part of a larger transnational movement that included the United States and which saw the emergence of concepts like national income, gross domestic product, and other attempts to define and improve the standards of living, as well as new approaches to old questions about the role of government. Forged as tools for peace these ideas were beaten into weapons as World War II threatened. Ekbladh recounts how, though the US had never been a member of the organization, vital parts of the League were rescued after the fall of France in 1940 and given asylum at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. However, this presence in the US is just one reason its already well-regarded economic analyses and example were readily mobilized by influential American and international figures for an Allied “war of ideas,” plans for a postwar world, and even blueprints for the new United Nations. How did this body of information become so valuable? As Ekbladh makes clear, the answer is that information and analysis themselves became crucial currencies in global affairs: to sustain a modern, liberal global order, a steady stream of information about economics, politics, and society was, and remains, indispensable.
Author / Editor information
David Ekbladh is associate professor of history at Tufts University.
Reviews
“Ekbladh’s telling of the League of Nations’ life—and afterlife—is refreshing in many aspects. It is a story of economic and political knowledge; a story of liberal international advocates and the society they defended, protected, and supported; a story that intertwines the domestic and the international. Ekbladh’s archival work is precise, mobilizing a number of different historiographical strands, and his writing is sober, sharp, and accessible.”
— Davide Rodogno, The Graduate Institute, Geneva“Plowshares into Swords is not just a model of international history, it is a powerful reminder of the importance of information and knowledge in the making of the modern world, even in an age of heightened nationalism. Ekbladh gives us fresh insights into the intellectual latticework of the League of Nations and the role that American institutions and thinkers played in its making. Ekbladh’s research is astonishing and the significance of his findings is vital for readers today.”
— Jeremy Adelman, Princeton University“Peopled with vivid portraits of dedicated internationalists, Plowshares into Swords focuses on the League’s specialized agencies’ extensive contributions to building an understanding of the specific characteristics of the global economy and to the aim of establishing a liberal international order. It also documents the Americans' crucial involvement in Geneva prior to the war and during WW II, when League officials were given asylum at Princeton University, highlighting the roles played by key American individuals, government agencies, private universities, and the Rockefeller Foundation. Ekbladh makes clear the links between the League’s efforts and the ‘American world’ that emerged after 1945. Recommended.”
— Choice"Plowshares into Swords offers us a storehouse of valuable and hitherto unexcavated materials that help us re-think certain dimension of inter-war geopolitics and the place of the League of Nations within them . . . . Above all, Ekbladh’s study reveals the extent to which the League of Nations—as a knowledge project more than one of so-called collective security—remained central to American hegemonic ambitions between 1920 and 1945. "
— H-Diplo"Plowshares into Swords is an excellent book. It showcases extraordinary archival research and tells its story in crisp prose studded with well-turned phrases and memorable sketches of the main protagonists as they make their journeys through international society. It makes a significant contribution not only in the history on the League of Nations itself but also to the history of international society writ large, and of the rise of the United States to global hegemony. Finally, this book reminds us of the central role of data—its collection, processing, analysis, and presentation—in the construction of the institutions and expertise that came to define postwar international society."
— Diplomatic History"The title brilliantly reflects the underlying argument, which contends that the transfer of knowledge – especially from Europe to the United States – shaped the world order after the Second World War, and explores how much of a legacy there was of the inter-war period. . . . Ekbladh’s book shows how past experiences permeated the UN, and how they shaped the post-1945 era."
— Modern European History"The exhaustive and comprehensive archival research upon which this book is based is impressive. Ekbladh has written an important study of how American internationalists 'weaponized' knowledge created by league actors to build a liberal internationalist order. It makes a valuable contribution to the literature on the histories of international organizations, international order, the emergent international civil service in the interwar period, postwar planning during the Second World War, and the United States in the world."
— Journal of Modern HistoryTopics
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Frontmatter
i -
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Contents
vii -
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Abbreviations
ix -
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Introduction: Knowledge in Exile
1 -
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1: The League Is the Thing: International Society’s Super- University
23 -
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2: Plowshares into Swords: Knowledge, Weaponized
69 -
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3: Internationalist Dunkirk: International Society in Exile
127 -
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4: The Rover Boys of Reconstruction: International Society in the American World
170 -
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Coda: Great Leaps Forward
228 -
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Acknowledgments
247 -
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Archival Collections and Abbreviations
251 -
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Notes
255 -
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Bibliography
287 -
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Index
305
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
September 29, 2022
eBook ISBN:
9780226820507
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook ISBN:
9780226820507
Keywords for this book
US hegemony; international order; League of Nations; global governance; knowledge creation; liberal internationalism; information; international organization; analysis
Audience(s) for this book
For an expert adult audience, including professional development and academic research
