British Defence Policy Since 1945

Based on excerpts from original sources, this book provides an introduction to the controversies and dilemmas that have confronted those making and implementing British defence policy since the end of World War II. Ovendale explores the policy dilemmas caused by Britain's parallel commitments to continental Europe and to a global foreign policy, the legacy of her imperial past. He also examines the decision in 1957 to rely on the nuclear deterrent, abolish conscription and move away from a maritime strategy; and the role of the Treasury in dictating the limits of British defence policy.

This book explores the process by which defence policy is made in contemporary Britain and the institutions, actors and conflicting interests which interact in its inception and continuous reformulation. Rather than dealing with the substance of defence policy, this study focuses upon the institutional actors involved in this process. This is a subject which has commanded far more interest from public, Parliament, government and the armed forces since the protracted, bloody and ultimately unsuccessful British military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. The work begins with a discussion of two contextual factors shaping policy. The first relates to the impact of Britain’s ‘special relationship’ with the United States over defence and intelligence matters, while the second considers the impact of Britain’s relatively disappointing economic performance upon the funding of British defence since 1945. It then goes on to explore the role and impact of all the key policy actors, from the Prime Minister, Cabinet and core executive, to the Ministry of Defence and its relations with the broader ‘Whitehall village’, and the Foreign Office and Treasury in particular. The work concludes by examining the increasing influence of external policy actors and forces, such as Parliament, the courts, political parties, pressure groups and public opinion. This book will be of much interest to students of British defence policy, security studies, and contemporary military history.

Foreign policy has dominated successive governments' time in office and cast a consistently long shadow over British politics in the period since 1945. Robert Self provides a readable and incisive assessment of the key issues and events from the retreat from empire through the cold war period to Humanitarian Intervention and the debacle in Iraq.

This text provides a concise thematic introduction to the evolution of British defence policy since the end of the second world war

What was Britain's reaction to the death of Stalin? How has Britain reconciled a modern nuclear strategy with its traditional imperial defence commitments around the world? How has secret intelligence affected the Special Relationship' since 1945? Certain clear questions and perennial themes run through British overseas policy since 1945. This book examines them, drawing on new research by leading historians and scholars in the field.

The object of defence policy, states Lord Carver, is to provide those who direct affairs with the greatest possible freedom of action in furthering the interests of the nation. In telling the story of British defence policy from VE-Day to the Gulf War and the collapse of Communism, he illustrates the key decisions which had the greatest influence on us as a nation. His narrative pinpoints the painful transitions involved in a long retreat from Empire, and the adjustments which have been made - some voluntarily, some under pressure - to take account of Britain's changing role in the world.

Dockrill looks at how British defence police has balanced the country's need to maintain the status of an independent nuclear power with its diminishing role in world politics. (Technology & Industrial)