ABSTRACT
Britain had found itself deeply involved in the struggle for supremacy among the European states, between 1931 and 1939. The other European states were not convinced that peace was desirable in order to ensure the existence of the British Empire. The Disarmament Conference, on which many in Britain placed great store, made no progress. The new states of central Europe were dismayed. The military debacle in the spring of 1940 and its domestic political consequences the rise of Churchill are discussed subsequently. In foreign policy, the results were equally momentous. In a frantic, last-minute, gesture as France collapsed, Churchill made the suggestion of an Act of Union between the two countries. If nobly meant, it must have seemed like an attempt by Britain to gain control of France's colonies and navy. Bevin did not have much difficulty in accepting the political logic of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan.
