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Political scientists in Britain have traditionally been more comfortable with, and open to, historical work than their American counterparts. There is nevertheless surprisingly little interaction between history and politics in the United Kingdom and little indication that political scientists make much use of even the best historical work on politics or international relations (IR). This essay reviews five more or less recent histories that focus on the British Empire and, more broadly, on Britain's place in the world, suggests why they might be of interest to students of contemporary politics and sketches a framework that might serve to connect them with more recent phenomena in Britain's IR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the motives for and nature of Great Britain's post-Second World War Continental (SWWC) commitment with reference to its efforts to lessen troop commitment after 1955. The costs of supporting foreign troops which became a major source of argument within the alliance and the troop questioned continued to weaken the solidarity of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization during 1960. It is said that the question is complicated by the fact that the administration of the U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was as uneasy as that of Great Britain to lessen overseas troops. It is concluded that the country's post-war objective on the SWWC is ensuring the reconstruction of continental Europe and is seeing that no single power would dominate it.