As war raged in western Europe in early1941, the influential publisher of Life magazine Henry R Luce claimed that in this, the great American century the United States must abandon isolationism and assume its destiny: global leadership.

The Allies' hard won victories in both Europe and the Asia-Pacific were built on America's newly evident power. The 'American Century' anticipated from the 1890s was translated during World War II into unprecedented military authority and expansive internationalism. 'Consider the twentieth century', Luce asserted prophetically. 'It is not only [ours] in the sense that we happen to live in it but ours also because it is America's first century as the dominant power in the world.'

This volume explores complex and changing relationships between two very unequal Pacific nations - relationships forged in war and sustained by a common alliance and a shared interest in peace. It brings together works published originally in journals and monographs in Australia and the United States since the late 1970s.