The years 1942 to 1946 saw the acceleration of World War II, its conclusion, and the construction of a post-war order that was to culminate in the Cold War. Andrew Baker here examines the expansion of US political and economic power, and hegemony during this period, and the extent to which smaller states, particularly Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and South Africa, contested this expansion. Through successfully outlining and defending their own notions of sovereignty, property, and commercial rights, they were able to a make a significant contribution towards fashioning a post-war framework more conducive to states than empires. This analysis of the period immediately after World War II will appeal to researchers of history and international relations, as well as those interested in the political economy of the post-war world.

Andrew Baker is a Lecturer in History at the Universities of Hertfordshire and Buckingham. He holds a DPhil from the University of Oxford.

Introduction
Chapter 1: The Imperial World
Chapter 2: The Trouble with American Power
Chapter 3: Organising Post-War Order
Chapter 4: Visions of Post-War Order
Chapter 5: The British Commonwealth in Global Affairs
Chapter 6: Functional Negotiations
Chapter 7: The Great Powers and Collective Security
Chapter 8: Failure
Chapter 9: Regional Integration, Imperial Disintegration
Conclusion: The Reinvention of the West