Allies at War: How the Struggles Between the Allied Powers Shaped the War and the World

Allies at War examines the political history of World War II, focusing on the challenges of maintaining the Allied coalition that defeated Hitler. After France fell in June 1940, Winston Churchill worked to bring the United States into the war, divide Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, and encourage neutral countries to resist German domination. By early 1942, the British-Soviet-American alliance had formed, though it was an unlikely partnership divided by ideology, politics, mistrust, and deceit. Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin were united against Hitler but disagreed on strategy, imperialism, and Europe's future. Understanding both their conflicts and cooperation is essential to comprehending the war's course and the world that followed. Based on research across more than a hundred archives, this narrative history uses firsthand accounts and unpublished diaries to reveal decision-making at the highest levels. It extends beyond the Grand Alliance to cover the Anglo-French partnership, relations with Charles de Gaulle and the Free French, and interactions with Poland, Greece, Francoist Spain, Ireland, Yugoslavia, and Nationalist China. The book explores the political drama underlying military events and traces the origins of the Cold War.