As Europe has expanded its influence in world economic & political affairs, there has been an increased need to understand how Europe recovered from the devastation of the Second World War to become a major world player. This concise history offers a comprehensive overview of Europe's political, social, economic & cultural developments since 1945. The author balances a narrative of the major events & personalities of the post-war political scene with a critical assessment of key issues & themes, such as: the development of the welfare state; European integration & the European Union; the Cold War; the rise & fall of the Soviet Union; the political-economic turmoil in eastern Europe since 1989; the place of Europe in the globalization of the world's political-economic affairs.