---
title: "Five-Power Treaty | World History 1400 to Present"
description: "The Five-Power Treaty was a 1922 naval disarmament pact among five nations that limited battleship tonnage and shaped interwar World History."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/world-history-since-1400/key-terms/five-power-treaty"
type: "key-term"
subject: "World History – 1400 to Present"
unit: "Unit 12"
---

# Five-Power Treaty | World History 1400 to Present

## Definition

The Five-Power Treaty was a 1922 naval disarmament agreement between the United States, Great Britain, Japan, France, and Italy. In World History, it shows how countries tried to control military competition after World War I.

## What It Is

The Five-Power Treaty was a 1922 agreement that limited naval armaments among the United States, Great Britain, Japan, France, and Italy. In World History 1400 to Present, you usually see it as part of the interwar effort to keep another major war from starting by controlling weapons before they could trigger a new arms race.

The treaty set ratios for battleship tonnage, which meant the major powers did not all build fleets at the same size. The United States and Great Britain were allowed the largest navies, while Japan, France, and Italy received lower limits. That ratio system mattered because naval power was tied to empire, trade routes, and security in the Pacific and Atlantic.

This was not just about counting ships. After World War I, leaders were trying to manage fear, debt, and public pressure for peace. Naval construction was expensive, so limiting battleships looked like a practical way to slow competition without requiring every country to trust everyone else completely.

The treaty also reflected anxiety about Japan’s growing naval power. In the Pacific, the United States and Britain wanted to avoid a costly buildup that could lead to conflict, while Japan wanted recognition as a major power. The treaty was one piece of a wider diplomatic effort to stabilize East Asia and reduce the chance that rival fleets would escalate tensions.

You should also place it alongside the other postwar agreements of the 1920s. The Five-Power Treaty did not stand alone, since the Four-Power Treaty and Nine-Power Treaty helped round out the diplomatic framework for peace and stability. Together, these agreements show the interwar belief that negotiation and limits on military hardware might prevent another world war, even though that hope later proved too weak to stop rearmament.

## Why It Matters

The Five-Power Treaty matters because it shows how World War I changed the way countries thought about security. Instead of treating military buildup as a normal sign of power, leaders tried to set limits and use diplomacy to manage rivalries.

In World History 1400 to Present, this treaty is a good example of interwar idealism mixed with fear. Countries wanted peace, but they also did not fully trust one another. That tension shows up again and again in the 1920s and 1930s, especially when you track why disarmament efforts were hard to sustain.

It also helps explain imperial and Pacific politics. Naval limits were not abstract policy, they affected who could project force overseas, protect trade routes, and claim influence in East Asia. If you understand the treaty, you can better read why Japan, the United States, and Britain all cared so much about fleets.

Finally, the treaty is a reminder that diplomacy can slow conflict without ending the causes of conflict. It reduced battleship competition for a time, but it did not remove nationalism, fear, or strategic rivalry. That makes it a useful turning point when studying why interwar peace efforts had short-term success but long-term limits.

## Connections

### Washington Naval Conference

This was the meeting where the Five-Power Treaty was negotiated. If you see the treaty in a timeline, the conference is the event that explains how the powers got to the agreement in the first place. It shows the diplomatic side of postwar disarmament, where leaders tried to solve military competition through negotiation rather than another buildup of fleets.

### Naval Disarmament

The Five-Power Treaty is a major example of naval disarmament because it limited battleship construction instead of banning war entirely. In a broader lesson, this term helps you see the difference between disarming one branch of the military and creating true collective security. The treaty shows the hope, and the limits, of that approach.

### Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles ended World War I, while the Five-Power Treaty belonged to the effort to manage the postwar world afterward. They connect because both reflect the search for a stable peace, but they worked in different ways. Versailles punished and redrew borders, while the Five-Power Treaty tried to prevent future conflict by limiting naval power.

### [Locarno Treaties](/world-history-since-1400/key-terms/locarno-treaties)

Both the Locarno Treaties and the Five-Power Treaty came out of the interwar desire to reduce tension through agreements. They are useful together because they show that diplomacy in the 1920s was not only about Europe. One set focused on European borders and guarantees, while the other addressed naval rivalry and East Asian security.

## On the AP Exam

A timeline ID question might ask you to place the Five-Power Treaty after World War I and connect it to disarmament. In a short response or essay, you could use it as evidence that the 1920s were not just a decade of rebuilding, but also a decade of diplomatic experiments meant to prevent another war.

When you analyze a prompt about interwar peace, mention that the treaty limited battleship tonnage and reflected concerns about Japan’s naval rise. If a question asks why peace settlements were incomplete, this treaty is a strong example because it reduced tension for a time but did not remove the underlying rivalry that led to rearmament later.

## Five-Power Treaty vs Treaty of Versailles

These treaties are easy to mix up because they both belong to the post-World War I peace process. The Treaty of Versailles ended the war and punished Germany, while the Five-Power Treaty focused on limiting naval arms among major powers. One is a peace settlement, the other is a disarmament agreement.

## Key Takeaways

- The Five-Power Treaty was a 1922 naval disarmament agreement among the United States, Great Britain, Japan, France, and Italy.
- It limited battleship tonnage and tried to slow the naval arms race that worried leaders after World War I.
- The treaty shows how interwar diplomacy aimed to preserve peace through military limits, not just through border changes.
- Japan’s rising naval power was a major reason the treaty mattered in Pacific politics.
- It reduced tension for a time, but it did not stop later militarization and conflict.

## FAQs

### What is the Five-Power Treaty in World History?

The Five-Power Treaty was a 1922 agreement that limited naval armaments among the United States, Great Britain, Japan, France, and Italy. In World History, it sits in the interwar period as an attempt to prevent another arms race after World War I. It is usually discussed as part of the wider push for peace and stability in the 1920s.

### Why did the Five-Power Treaty matter for Japan?

Japan mattered because the treaty was shaped partly by concern over its growing naval strength. The agreement set limits on battleship tonnage, which affected Japan’s ability to match the larger fleets of the United States and Great Britain. That made the treaty a key piece of Pacific power politics, not just a European peace issue.

### How is the Five-Power Treaty different from the Treaty of Versailles?

The Treaty of Versailles ended World War I and punished Germany, while the Five-Power Treaty tried to prevent future conflict by limiting naval weapons. They are both part of the postwar order, but they work in different ways. Versailles was about settling the war, and the Five-Power Treaty was about controlling the next competition.

### What did the Five-Power Treaty limit?

It limited battleship tonnage, which is a way of controlling how much naval power each country could build. That meant the signatories could not keep expanding their fleets without regard to the treaty ratios. The goal was to stop costly naval competition before it turned into a larger military crisis.

## Related Study Guides

- [12.1 Recovering from World War I](/world-history-since-1400/unit-12/1-recovering-world-war/study-guide/edEDdJ35lIhzxLX7)

## About This Document

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