Britain, France and the Entente Cordiale Since 1904 (Studies in Military and Strategic History)

This collection gathers many of the best-known names in the field of Anglo-French relations and provides an authoritative survey of the field. Starting with the crucial period of the First World War and ending with the equally complex question of the second Iraq War, the study has an emphasis on British perceptions of the Entente. Britain, France and the Entente Cordiale Since 1904 provides an in-depth re-examination of the significant debates, interpretations and historiographical shifts for the major phases in Anglo-French relations since the inception of the Entente in the early twentieth century. Each chapter examines its topic in the light of the most recent scholarship by experts in the field, many of whom are internationally renowned scholars. The topics covered range accross many of the important events and aspects affecting Anglo-French relations this century, inlcuding interpersonal relations (Lloyd George and Clemenceau; Churchill and de Gaulle); the evolution of British perceptions of France; economic questions; political aspects such as British communism; disarmament and rearmament; the Suez affair; the three-cornered relationship between Britain, France and America; and the topical conundrum of Iraq Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction: ‘Britain’s most enduring Special Relationship’....Pages 1-7 ‘French people have a peculiar facility for being misrepresented’: British Perceptions of France at War, 1914–18....Pages 8-27 Lloyd George and Clemenceau: Prima Donnas in Partnership....Pages 28-40 Behind the façade of the Entente Cordiale after the Great War....Pages 41-63 Entente and Argument: Britain, France and Disarmament, 1899–1934....Pages 64-77 British Communists and Anglo-French Relations, 1914–45....Pages 78-104 Churchill and de Gaulle: Makers and Writers of History....Pages 105-123 The Singularity of Suez in post-war Anglo-French Relations: Une Entente mal entendue....Pages 124-142 De Gaulle and Anglo-French Mésentente, 1958–67....Pages 143-161 Franco-British Relations during the Wilson Years, 1964–70....Pages 162-183 From Heath to Thatcher, 1970–90....Pages 184-197 A Complex Alliance: The Explosive Chemistry of Franco-British Relations in the Post-Cold War World....Pages 198-218 Back Matter....Pages 219-225 Britain, France and the Entente Cordiale Since 1904 provides an in-depth re-examination of the significant debates, interpretations and historiographical shifts for the major phases in Anglo-French relations since the inception of the Entente in the early twentieth century. Each chapter examines its topic in the light of the most recent scholarship by experts in the field, many of whom are internationally renowned scholars. The topics covered range across many of the important events and aspects affecting Anglo-French relations this century, including interpersonal relations (Lloyd George and Clemenceau ; Churchill and de Gaulle); the evolution of British perceptions of France; economic questions; political aspects such as British communism; disarmament and rearmament ; the Suez affair; the three-cornered relationship between Britain, France and America; and the topical conundrum of Iraq