Poland, the United States, and the Stabilization of Europe, 1919-1933 [Hardcover]

In the eyes of the world, no European country appeared more vulnerable to its enemies or less likely to establish peace with them than inter-war Poland. This is the first full-length study of relations between Poland and the U.S. following World War I, as Poland turned to America to buttress its precarious position. Pease lucidly examines how Polish leaders of the 1920s, discerning America's essential aim of fostering stability in Europe, sought to enlist U.S. political and financial support on behalf of their beleaguered state. Drawing on exhaustive archival research, Pease unravels the fascinating ties between these unlikely diplomatic partners. He reveals how Poland not only had to fight an uphill battle against inter-war America's isolationism, but also had to counter America's reluctance to underwrite a nation surrounded by two strong and hostile neighbors, Germany and the Soviet Union. Poland's plea for political and financial backing was ultimately denied by both the White House and Wall Street with dire consequences for Poland's future and Europe's fragile peace. Authoritative and original, this book is valuable contribution to our understanding of America and Europe during the interwar years.

A comprehensive treatment of American-Polish relations for the period....Pease's familiarity with the Polish language and archives is exemplary. He also writes very well. --The Historian

An extremely valuable contribution to modern historiography. It completes the picture of American stabilization policy after the First World War, and it also provides a new and comprehensive account of American-Polish relations under two Republican administrations....Based on very rich sources from American, British, and Polish archives. --Business History Review

There are many things to be learned, or relearned, from Pease's narrative....Pease's distinctive contribution here is his astute description of interwar central bank diplolCZ