Examining events such as the Iranian oil nationalization crisis and the Suez crisis, this book is an important history of the unravelling of the British Empire in the Middle East and its connections to the decline of sterling as a leading international currency and British oil policy in the region.

Introduction; 1. Anglo-American conflict over oil and the sterling area; 2. Sterling and Britain's confrontation with nationalism in Iran; 3. The Suez crisis: a sterling rescue operation gone wrong; 4. Kuwait's surplus oil revenue: the benefit and threat to sterling; Conclusion: the devaluation of 1967 and the end of empire.

Review of the hardback: '... meticulously researched, rich in primary source documentation, and strong on economic analysis. ... a readable account of the tribulations and termination of Britain's Middle East empire.' Middle East InternationalReview of the hardback: 'Many strands of the final years of British imperialism are brought together in this lucid and fascinating study by Steven Galpern. It is likely to remain the definitive account of the links between sterling, oil and the Middle East.' Middle Eastern StudiesReview of the hardback: 'There is much to admire in Galpern's study. It is a pioneering study of the financial and diplomatic aspects of oil policy, meticulously researched, and covering an enormous amount of complicated financial detail in a manner which never loses the non-specialist.' Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth HistoryReview of the hardback: '... an important reinterpretation of British decolonization in the Middle East.' American Historical ReviewReview of the hardback: 'Scholars from fields as diverse as Middle East studies, international history, the British Empire, business and economic history, and US foreign relations will read this book with great profit. And read it they must if they are to develop a more sophisticated - and thus more complete - understanding of the postwar British role in the Middle East.' Iranian Studies