The history of modern Europe is heavily defined by often brutal war. America, via the NATO alliance, was able to turn the tide of war to the benefit of hundreds of millions of people. Since the birth of NATO in 1949, the peoples of Europe have enjoyed a peace and prosperity unprecedented in the history of the continent. There are few better examples of American exceptionalism.
History tells the tale.
The major nation-states of the continent, Great Britain, France, and Germany, were created by conflict between powerful land owners and hereditary rulers. In 1485, modern England came into existence with the victory of Henry VII over Richard of York at the Battle of Bosworth Field. Henry became king, establishing dominance over the other feudal lords for the first time.
France became a unified nation-state with the reign of Louis XIV, the Sun King. He ruled for 72 years and established France as the dominant power on the continent. He came close to being an absolute ruler, not confined by other landowners or the Catholic Church.
The third major power of the continent took form much later when Otto von Bismarck, through war and diplomacy, created the nation-state of Germany. He was first the prime minister of Prussia, the dominant state of the German people, and later became the first chancellor of modern Germany.
For the first several hundred years of the history of modern Europe, the largest countries battled for supremacy against the Church of Rome. Only with the Treaty of Westphalia did the nation-state supplant the Vatican as the primary political organization of the continent. The treaty also established the principle of religious self-determination. But war was frequent in Europe. England fought France several times, and true peace between the two countries was only established with the Duke of Wellington’s victory over Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo in 1815.
England also waged maritime wars against Spain, France, and the Netherlands as it established primacy at sea. France and Germany also engaged in violent conflict. Prussia was part of the English alliance that defeated Napoleon. In the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, Prussia humiliated France. France repaid that humiliation with the harsh Treaty of Versailles, ending the slaughter of World War I.
War is so common in European history that just 20 years after the end of World War I, a war that took approximately 15 million to 20 million lives, the German people willingly followed Adolf Hitler into World War II. Hitler’s fanaticism led to the deaths of tens of millions of Europeans. That terrible conflict proved that slaughter was part of the fabric of Europe.
Only when the United States entered World War II and destroyed Nazi Germany did the continent of Europe find lasting peace among its major nations. Since 1945, Great Britain, France, and Germany, democratic powers of the continent, have resolved their differences peacefully. This history matters. And Americans should be very proud of it.
From Tuesday to Thursday, the 32 nation-states that make up the alliance of NATO will gather in Washington to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the organization.
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NATO and the Pax Americana are imperfect. Too many European nations, such as Belgium, Spain, and Germany, continue to freeload off the back of the American security umbrella. They do so even as the U.S. is forced to divert resources to confront the rising risk of war with China. However, NATO is essential to the national security of the U.S. A peaceful and economically successful Europe is essential to U.S. prosperity.
If nothing else, however, NATO’s 75th anniversary offers a chance for Americans to consider Europe’s history before and after our military involvement in it — and, in doing so, be very proud.
James Rogan is a former U.S. foreign service officer who later worked in finance and law for 30 years. He writes a daily note on the markets, politics, and society.
