Lloyd C. Gardner

Llyod Gardner builds on the fundamental insight provided by Williams in his consideration of the Anglo-American response to revolution under Wilson and Llyod George. These two statesmen were committed to the principles of economic Liberalism, but with the significant difference that Llyod George was constrained by the politics of Imperial England. Wilson, by contrast, sought to remake the world in America's image. The British desire to preserve their empire and America's efforts to subvert British imperial preference in the name of the Open Door, made the two men "mismatched" allies from the outset.

Responding to the legitimate grievances of the peoples of Mexico, China, and Russia, Wilson sought to direct revolution away from radical demands and into the paths of Liberal capitalism. Wilson sought thereby to avoid the counter-revolutionary reaction which inevitably follows on the heels of radical revolution. When revolutions proved unwilling to yield to his direction, particularly in the case of the Russian revolution, Wilson responded with incomprehension. The Bolsheviks had to be German agents, for instance, if they refused his guidance. Gardner makes a point of emphasizing Wilson's attempt to maintain control of the revolutions which he confronted.… (mais)