3
3
within the special relationship itself? I hope to address these questions through the lens
of alliance theory, exploring how it plays out in light of the evidence we have thus far.
This paper will begin with a brief history of the special relationship to offer context,
followed by a brief background to the Bush-Blair relationship itself, an overview of
Glenn Snyder’s theory of alliance maintenance, and finally a review of the evidence thus
far.
The history of the special relationship
The British-American special relationship is one of the strongest, most enduring
alliances in the world, and one may see its vitality on virtually all levels: political,
military, economic, and cultural. Different scholars point to different starting points for
the birth of the relationship. Some think that because of some of the common
attributes—such as language and history (as colony and mother country)—the
relationship actually goes back as far as the eighteenth century, if not before. Others
point to the alliance formed against the Axis powers in World War I. Most, however,
point to World War II as the most reasonable starting point. It was only then and
afterwards that, as John Baylis informs us, “the partnership became so close, intimate,
and informal in such a wide spectrum of political, economic, and especially military
fields.”
3
And, as Baylis continues, however important such factors as common language,
culture, and history may be, it is also true that both countries share such close ties with
3
John Baylis, Anglo-American Defense Relations 1939-1984 (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1984), p.
xvii.
Convention