ABSTRACT
A common theme running through accounts of British foreign policy in the post-1945 era is the way in which successive governments have sought to balance Britain's declining economic and political influence with maintaining the country as a key strategic player in world politics. As the carnage of the Second World War came to an end, the process of establishing the post-war settlement began. Berlin was strategically and ideologically important because it lay at the front of the Cold War struggle, of which this was the first major test. In analysing the factors that shaped British foreign policy in the post-war period, one of the most important developments was the retreat from Empire and the refocusing of policy towards European integration. Policy-makers in London concluded that the maintenance of British influence on world affairs through its status as the third great power required the continued ability to draw on the Empire and ensuring that strategic agreements underpinned Britain's influence.
