1st Edition
Britain, America, and the Special Relationship since 1941
Britain, America and the Special Relationship since 1941 examines the Anglo-American strategic and military relationship that developed during the Second World War and continued until recent years. Forged on a common ground of social, cultural, and ideological values as well as political expediency, this partnership formed the basis of the western alliance throughout the Cold War, playing an essential part in bringing stability to the post-1945 international order.
Clearly written and chronologically organized, the book begins by discussing the origins of the ‘Special Relationship’ and its progression from uneasy coexistence in the eighteenth century to collaboration at the start of the Second World War. McKercher explores the continued evolution of this partnership during the conflicts that followed, such as the Suez Crisis, the Vietnam War, and the Falklands War. The book concludes by looking at the developments in British and American politics during the past two decades and analysing the changing dynamics of this alliance over the course of its existence.
Illustrated with maps and photographs and supplemented by a chronology of events and list of key figures, this is an essential introductory resource for students of the political history and foreign policies of Britain and the United States in the twentieth century.
List of figures
Maps
Chronology
Who’s Who
Abbreviations
Part I: Prologue
Chapter 1: The Anglo-American ‘Special Relationship’
Part II: Britain, America, and the Origins of the Special Relationship
Chapter 2: The Anglo-American Relationship before 1939
The Uneasy Relationship, 1782-1900
Britain, America, and Stability in International Politics, 1900-1914
The Drift to Co-operation in the First World War
The Paris Peace Conference and the American Return
to Isolationism, 1919-
Anglo-American Economic Competition, 1919-1939
Arms Limitation and International Security, 1919-1939
Chapter 3: The Second World War and the
Advent of the ‘Special Relationship’
The Immediate Origins of the Relationship,
September 1939-December 1941
Churchill and Roosevelt: War and Diplomacy,
December 1941-November 1943
Britain, America, and the Advent of a New International Order,
November 1943-May 1945
Part III: Cold War, Limited War, and the ‘Special Relationship’, 1945-2015
Chapter 4: The ‘Special Relationship’ and the Early Cold War,
May 1945-July 1954
The Genesis of the Cold War, May 1945-June 1948
The German Question and the Rise of NATO, June 1948-May 1954
Britain, America, and Decolonisation in East Asia, May 1945-July 1954
Chapter 5: From Cold War to Détente, 1954-1968
British decolonisation and the Road to Suez, 1954-1956 Britain, America, and the Problem of the Middle East,
November 1956-November 1968
European Defense and the German Question, 1954-1968
Chapter 6: From Détente to Renewed Cold War, 1965-1979
Britain and American Involvement in Vietnam, January 1965-April 1973
Britain, America, and European Economic Integration,
January 1969-December 1979
Soviet Russian Expansionism and the Anglo-American
Response, May 1975-December 1979
Chapter 7: Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, and the ‘Special
Relationship’, December 1979-December 1988
Carter, Reagan, and Thatcher: To Euromissile
Deployment in Europe, 1981-1985
The Falklands War and the Strength of
the ‘Special Relationship’, 1982-1983
Thatcher, Reagan, and Mikhail Gorbachev:
The Weakening of Soviet Russia, 1983-1988
Chapter 8: The ‘Special Relationship’ and the
New International Order, 1989-2015
George H.W. Bush, Margaret Thatcher,
and the End of the Cold War, 1989-1990
The ‘Special Relationship’ and the Gulf War, 1990-1992
Britain, America, and the Balkans, 1992-1998
George Bush, Jr, Tony Blair, the War Against Terrorism, and Changing
International Politics, 2001-2007
Barack Obama, Gordon Brown, and David Cameron:
Challenges Old and New after 2007
Part IV: Epilogue
Chapter 9: The Anglo-American ‘Special Relationship’ and International
Politics since 1941: An Appraisal
Part V: Documents
Glossary
Guide to Further Reading
Index
Bibliography
Biography
B.J.C. McKercher is Professor of International History at the University of Victoria, Canada. He is the editor of the journal Diplomacy and Statecraft and is general editor of The Praeger Series on Foreign Policy in the Interwar Period (with K. E. Neilson) and The Praeger Series on Diplomacy and Strategic Thought. His recent publications include The Handbook of Diplomacy and Statecraft (2011, edited), War in the Twentieth Century (2003, edited with M. A. Hennessy) and Power and Stability: British Foreign Policy, 1865-1965 (2003, edited with E. Goldstein).
"Brian McKercher’s book is a very useful starting point for students looking for a critical analysis of the Anglo-American ‘special relationship’ since 1945."
Tony McCulloch, University College London, UK
