An essay is presented on the history of U.S. public diplomacy commemorating the American Revolution Bicentennial in 1976. It discusses the participation of non-American officials to further their nations' complementary and competing interests. It also examines how public diplomats and international actors engaged in the so-called commemorative diplomacy during the 40th anniversary of the end of World War II in 1985 and the 1989 French Revolution Bicentennial.
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