Books by Sylvia Ellis

Isolated by much of the world for its conduct of the war in Vietnam, the United States saw British support as a key component of its efforts to sway public opinion. This is the first serious examination of the impact of the Vietnam War on the Anglo-American special relationship during the years of the Johnson presidency. Using recently released government papers, oral interviews, and transcripts of presidential phone conversations, Ellis discusses the discord between the United Kingdom and the United States over the war in Southeast Asia. She focuses on the pressures placed on Prime Minister Harold Wilson's Labor Government to provide material aid to the war and to remain squarely behind the U.S. war effort in public.Britain's refusal to send troops to Vietnam and Wilson's insistence on trying to mediate the conflict were both sources of tension between the allies. This study explores the extent to which the United Kingdom was pressured to send troops to the combat zone, the part that the personal relationship between Wilson and Johnson played in the tensions, and the evidence that a deal was done to link the maintenance of British defenses East of Suez with U.S. support for the pound sterling. It concludes that Wilson managed to walk a political tightrope on Vietnam, providing just enough diplomatic support for the Americans to keep Washington satisfied and putting just enough limits on that support to keep an increasingly vociferous domestic anti-war movement at bay.

Anglo-American relations have been a crucial factor in international relations for over two centuries. For most of that time dealings between Britain and the United States have remained co-operative, cordial, and supportive. In the beginning, however, relations were confrontational and discordant: the two nations waged war against each other twice_in the War of Independence and in the War of 1812_and have often disagreed over trade, finance, and foreign policy. This volume demonstrates the changing nature of Anglo-American relations and focuses, in particular, on the strengths and fragilities of the 'special relationship' that developed in the aftermath of the WWII and continues to the present day. The Historical Dictionary of Anglo-American Relations surveys Anglo-American relations from 1607 to the present and covers key events, individuals, and issues that have played a part in its history. Through a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, appendixes, and hundreds of cross-referenced entries_with an emphasis on the political and economic relationship between Britain and the United States but also featuring the cultural links between the two_this comprehensive and easily accessible reference tool will delight those interested in the history of these two countries.