ABSTRACT
It is not surprising, in the aftermath of the Second World War in which Australia found itself almost totally dependent on United States power, and through a deepening Cold War in which Australia's commitment to the Western side had the overwhelming support of the electorate, that Australian governments from 1949 to 1972 believed that Australia was essentially vulnerable because of its isolation and small population and that its long term security and prosperity were best protected by close alliance with the superpower leader of the Western world. While that policy was carried at times too far, to the point of submerging independent thinking and an independent voice, it is now seldom noted that during that period of 23 years Australian foreign policy also sought to build constructive relationships in the Asian region. But before examining that policy strand we need to look at the effects of the residue of Britishness and of the feeling that Australians were ‘Australian Britons’, and how the dilution of that feeling facilitated the development of a more open and wider Australian foreign policy.
