The Making of Peace: Rulers, States, and the Aftermath of War

The Making of Peace represents a unique contribution to the study of war: namely, the difficulties that statesmen have confronted in attempting to put back together the pieces after a major conflict. These essays examine how Western belligerents have addressed - or failed to address - the making of peace across a span of two and a half millennia and in contests reflecting a broad range of prompting disputes. Some efforts produced at best a momentary suspension of hostilities. Others transformed the very context of international relations. Defined more modestly, however, as the control and moderation of violence, some peacemaking efforts were notably more successful than others. This study also serves as a first draft of a guide for those who will confront the equally difficult task of maintaining the peace, once achieved. It contains path-breaking essays by leading historians of the United States and the United Kingdom.

1. Introduction Williamson Murray; 2. The peace of Nicias Paul H. Rahe; 3. 'A swift and sure peace': the congress of Westphalia 1643-1648 Derek Croxton and Geoffrey Parker; 3. The peace of Paris, 1763 Fred Anderson; 4. In search of repose: the congress of Vienna and the making of peace Richard Hart Sinnreich; 5. War and peace in the post-civil war south James M. McPherson; 6. Vae victoribus: Bismarck's quest for peace in the Franco-Prussian war, 1870-1871 Marcus Jones; 7. Versailles: the peace without a chance Williamson Murray; 8. 'Building buffers and filling vacuums': Great Britain and the Middle East, 1914-1922 John Gooch; 9. Mission improbable, fear, culture, and interest: peacemaking, 1943-1949 Colin Gray; 10. The economic making of peace James Lacey; 11. Ending the Cold War Frederick W. Kagan; 12. Conclusion: history and the making of peace Richard Hart Sinnreich.