#Rejoin empire or keep alliance full#
He decided to block all land routes and waterways in and out of West Berlin in an effort to gain full control of the city. When tensions grew between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union in 1948, Joseph Stalin, the Soviet leader, imposed the Berlin Blockade. The city was an enclave within the Soviet-controlled part of Germany. Those magnificent men in their flying machinesĪfter the Second World War, the United Kingdom controlled one of the four zones of Berlin. This defence wing of the Western Union was later absorbed by NATO, and Montgomery became NATO’s first Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (DSACEUR). So when the Brussels Pact was established, he became the Chairman of the Western Union’s Commanders-in-Chief Committee and was based at the military headquarters in Versailles, France. The Pact was also a signal to the United States, a way of persuading them to be part of an alliance.įield Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, who had had a major role in helping to achieve Allied victory in 1945, was also a true believer in perpetuating the vital transatlantic link that had been established with North America during the Second World War. It committed the signatories to come to one another’s defence in the event of an attack – a principle that would be at the heart of the future North Atlantic Treaty. In March 1948, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom signed the Brussels Pact. Following the launch of the Marshall Plan in 1947, he was eager to show the Americans that the Europeans were prepared to defend themselves and unite to reduce the risk of another war. In the United Kingdom, Ernest Bevin, Foreign Secretary under the newly elected Labour government led by Clement Atlee, shared the same hopes and convictions.Įrnest Bevin was a staunch anti-communist, who fervently believed that the survival of the West depended on a union between Western Europe and the United States. Truman, Churchill hoped to join the United States in building a post-war order that would limit Soviet leader Joseph Stalin's communist ambitions. Ernest Bevin – a man with a planĪ close friend of American presidents Franklin D. In 1946, in Missouri, United States, Sir Winston Churchill (British Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1955) famously stated in his speech, “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent.” This marked the beginning of what was going to be a long Cold War. And there were still more challenges to come even when the country and its economy had been devastated by the Second World War and was still functioning on wartime ration books (they were suspended in 1954).
In the immediate post-war period, the United Kingdom had to maintain troops in West Germany and face the unrest in its colonies and protectorates. However, the two World Wars introduced a greater need for land forces. The control of the seas was essential in protecting its territories and securing alliances with other powers. This support manifested itself in its policies, its willingness to participate in Alliance activities and its steadfast commitment, even during more testing times like the Suez Crisis.īeing an island and an Empire with colonies spread across the globe, the United Kingdom’s defences were heavily reliant on a traditional maritime strategy. The United Kingdom continued to be a strong supporter of NATO throughout the Cold War and never doubted the value of belonging to a collective defence organisation. The prospect of being part of an alliance was seen as an opportunity to protect each other, collectively, from future adversaries. Like many countries, it had been heavily afflicted by the two World Wars and faced multiple challenges in 1945. The British public was quasi unanimous in its support for NATO membership in 1949.
Speaking at the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty The Right Honourable Ernest Bevin, Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom Speaking for the British people, I can assure you that they have agreed to make their contribution to the pool of peace. Today is not only the day of the signature of this pact it is also a day of solemn thought – and, may I say, of consecration for peace and resistance to aggression.