Commission on Responsibility of the Authors of the War and on Enforcement of Penalties

The Commission on Responsibility of the Authors of the War and on Enforcement of Penalties was established by the Allied powers after World War I. Its primary goal was to investigate and assign responsibility for the war and to recommend penalties. The commission's report suggested that war crimes trials be conducted in the victors' national courts or an inter-Allied tribunal.1

The commission identified Germany's Emperor William II as a primary target, but he was never tried as the Netherlands refused to extradite him. Germany was reluctant to hand over suspected war criminals, leading to a compromise where a few suspects were tried in Germany, resulting in minimal convictions. This marked an early, though largely unsuccessful, attempt to enforce accountability for wartime actions.1