France Restored: Cold War Diplomacy and the Quest for Leadership in Europe, 1944-1954 (The New Cold War History) - Softcover

Hitchcock, William I.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080784747X ISBN 13: 9780807847473

Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, 1998

Synopsis

Historians of the Cold War, argues William Hitchcock, have too
often overlooked the part that European nations played in shaping
the post-World War II international system. In particular,
France, a country beset by economic difficulties and political
instability in the aftermath of the war, has been given short
shrift.
With this book, Hitchcock restores France to the narrative
of Cold War history and illuminates its central role in the
reconstruction of Europe. Drawing on a wide array of evidence
from French, American, and British archives, he shows that France
constructed a coherent national strategy for domestic and
international recovery and pursued that strategy with tenacity
and effectiveness in the first postwar decade. This once-occupied
nation played a vital part in the occupation and administration
of Germany, framed the key institutions of the "new" Europe,
helped forge the NATO alliance, and engineered an astonishing
economic recovery. In the process, France successfully contested
American leadership in Europe and used its position as a key Cold
War ally to extract concessions from Washington on a wide range
of economic and security issues.

About this title

Book Description:

"A valuable contribution to the University of North Carolina Press's 'New Cold War History' series."-- American Historical Review

From the Inside Flap:

In an important revision of early Cold War history, Hitchcock restores France's central role in the post-World War II reconstruction of Europe. He focuses on French diplomacy toward the occupation of Germany, the economic reconstruction of the continent, and the crafting of the NATO alliance.

About this edition

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 080784747X
• ISBN 13: 9780807847473
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 308