Product Description

What went wrong in Free French relations with Americans during World War Two? Two peoples, presumably sharing a common cause in a war to defeat the axis powers, often found themselves locked in bitter disputes that exposed fundamental differences in outlook and intentions, creating a profound misunderstanding or mesentente that was a major source of Franco-American conflict during the war and has persisted since then. The site for this dispute was the South Pacific colony of New Caledonia. By documenting carefully French policy toward the American presence in New Caledonia during the war, the author demonstrates the existence of a deep-seated suspicion, fear, even paranoia about the Americans that colored almost every phase of Free French policy. Revising traditional views, the author lays bare the roots of the antagonism, which stem from perceptions and biases.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4739717 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 264 pages

Review
"This book makes distinct contributions to the existing literature on French-American relations... but it is also interesting in its own right." Irwin Wall, University of California/Irvine

About the Author
Kim Munholland received his Ph. D. from Princeton University and, since 1963, has been a member of the history faculty at the University of Minnesota where he has taught Modern European and French History.

Customer Reviews

A close scrutiny of why Franco-American relations soured and broke into bitter disputes during World War II
Modern European and French History professor Kim Munholland presents Rock Of Contention: Free French And Americans At War In New Caledonia, 1940-1945, a close scrutiny of why Franco-American relations soured and broke into bitter disputes during World War II - a time when the threat of the axis powers should have provided a unifying common enemy. Focusing on the South Pacific colony of New Caledonia as the most incendiary cause of acrimony, Rock Of Contention demonstrates the presence of suspicion, fear, and even paranoia that colored Free French policy toward the Americans present at virtually every phase. This is a sharply drawn, deftly written, straight-laced exposure of the perceptions and biases that generated a lasting international ill will, with repercussions up to the present day.