Gerald R. Ford and the rejuvenation of Anglo-American Relations

Marsh, Steve ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3411-6488, Hendershot, Robert M. and Culley, Tia 2026. Gerald R. Ford and the rejuvenation of Anglo-American Relations. Contemporary British History 10.1080/13619462.2026.2722953

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Abstract

The general thrust of scholarship on Anglo-American relations is that the years overseen by President Nixon and Prime Minister Heath were tension filled and that it was not until the Carter administration that matters returned to a firmer footing. While revisionist scholarship has challenged the extent of tensions between Heath and Nixon, the emphasis placed upon the Carter years in explaining the relationship’s recovery has gone largely unchallenged. This article, however, argues that important elements of the recovery of Anglo-American relations had already begun during the Ford administration. President Ford helped restore confidence to personal relationships and reinvigorate key conduits of consultation and cooperation. He also proved more aware than his predecessor of how deepening interdependence foregrounded the importance of soft power and the intersection of cultural currents with executive diplomacy. By strengthening functional cooperation, tapping transatlantic cultural connections, and publicly rehearsing tropes of ‘specialness’ in UK-US relations, the Ford administration laid important foundations for a rejuvenated special relationship.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	In Press
Schools:	Schools > Cardiff Law & Politics
Publisher:	Taylor and Francis Group
ISSN:	1361-9462
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	17 September 2026
Last Modified:	17 Sep 2026 15:11
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/189699

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