Origins of the Cold War 1942-1947

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K03344
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: International relations
• Research Institution: Kwansei Gakuin University
• Principal Investigator: Shibayama Futoshi 関西学院大学, 総合政策学部, 教授 (50308772)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 国際関係史 / 冷戦史 / 冷戦の起源 / 英米軍事同盟

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This research project made the following academic contributions. First, most historical researches have focused on U.S.-Soviet perspective, in fact in most cases, U.S. perspective, in dealing with the origins of the Cold War, the most significant in understanding the nature of the Cold War. But this research project successfully introduced an indispensable status of Great Britain in bringing out the Cold War. In other words, this project introduced Anglo-American-Soviet perspective on the origins of the Cold War. Second, this project vigorously collected military documents, especially Anglo-American ones, for identifying and analyzing both military involvements and influences in both governments' decision-making processes, related with the beginning of the Cold War. Third, this project also clarified the role and nature of Anglo-American military alliance, which started in June 1940, made substantial influence on the beginning of the Cold War.

Free Research Field

国際関係史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

具体的には、次の貢献ができたと思われる。第1に、これまでの冷戦研究は、米ソ史観、いやほとんどが米国中心史観で、冷戦起源論を書いてきたが、本研究では英国の役割を重視し、英米ソ三国史観を導入した。英国の大きな役割がなければ、冷戦勃発は語れないと自負している。第2に、本研究は、英米軍部資料を積極的に使用した。その結果、これまで多くの外交史家たちが見逃してきた、両軍部の役割や軍事的算定の意味を、冷戦勃発に関係づけることに成功した。第3に、第2次世界大戦中から継続して来た英米軍事同盟が、どのように冷戦勃発に関連したかも明らかにできた。