George HW Bush has died and with him the ‘American century’

What Bush, the 41st US president, lived long enough to see is the end of the post-Second World War era, writes Gerard Howlin.

George H W Bush’s funeral in Washington DC today signifies a much more profound changing of the guard than the death of just one president. To understand the ultimate significance of his passing, go back to John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address, in 1961.