Introduction or preface

From the contemporary viewpoint, seventy years later, the year 1945 is still a landmark in twentieth-century history, but its many meanings are perhaps easier to grasp. 1945 was not only the year of the end of the Second World War, but also the beginning of the division of the world into two spheres of influence, of the nuclear era and the first steps towards the Cold War; a decisive and irreversible push to the process of decolonization; the beginning of the political and economic hegemony of the US in the West; the global spread of the concept of democracy - albeit in its various interpretations - and its redefinition. Three prominent European historians deal with these issues in the present discussion. Key words: 1945, Decolonization, American century, Cold war, Democracy