Pacts and Alliances in History: Diplomatic Strategy and the Politics of Coalitions

(Hardback)

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Agreements between nations constitute the fundamental framework for the ordering of international affairs; and their successes and failures have led to some of the great turning points in modern history. The result of a unique collaboration by historians and political scientists, this book delineates, defines and assesses the idea of pacts and alliances as a key model of political organisation. Anchored by leading academics in the field, it presents numerous case studies covering a broad chronological sweep. Through theoretical and empirical methodology, the contributors address pacts and alliances from the fifteenth century onwards including, among others, the Korean-American and Moscow-Cairo alliances, the Sevres Pact, Turkey's accession to NATO and US alliances around the world. Through a close reading of these historical diplomatic relationships, fundamental yet relatively unaddressed research questions are developed and explored. First, what are the common denominators shared by successful alliances Second, why do pacts and alliances disintegrate Third, is the eventual demise of pacts and alliances inevitable Finally, what are the implications of these issues on pact and alliance making today This is the first volume to address this wide range of issues, and to bring together researchers and theorists from the historical and political disciplines to provide original and groundbreaking theories of diplomacy. Together, these case studies explore why alliances succeed, why they fail and why it matters. Pacts and Alliances in History is therefore not only important reading for the next generation of policymakers, but will also help frame scholars' enquiries as they try to understand key events in international relations and history.

Reviews

'This edited volume is an intriguing contribution to a large and complex dimension of both international history and international relations...The editors have gathered together a diverse group of scholars who work with different methodological tools, use different archives, and work in different time frames. The result is a volume that is global in its scope.' Anne Deighton, Professor of European International Politics, Wolfson College, Oxford. 'An exceptionally well-integrated work of collaborative scholarship...a signal contribution to the literature. It defines major research and policy issues, offers significant case studies, and points the way to future work.' Carole Fink, Humanities Distinguished Professor of History and an associate of the Mershon Center for International Security Studies, Ohio State University.

Author Bio

Melissa P. Yeager is the Assistant Professor of History at Longwood University, Virginia and holds a DPhil from Oxford University. Charles Carter is a reader in History at Ohio State University.