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...also expected protect the sea routes upon which the country's trade and communications depended. The navy maintained the capacity to engage foreign fleets and to mount sea-borne blockades and expeditions against enemy powers. The army's role was outlined by Edward Stanhope, Secretary of State for War, in a memorandum in December 1888. In order of priority, its duties comprised support for the UK's civil authorities, garrison duties in India and the colonies, defence of the homeland and an ability to make a limited contribution to war in continental Europe.
Over the period as a whole, Europe was consistently seen as the least likely scenario for the deployment of British forces. There were important exceptions: British troops were heavily committed in the Peninsular campaign during the Napoleonic Wars, in the Crimea and the First World War. Yet Britain's strategic priorities, for the greater part of this period, are bound to seem surprising to a post-imperial generation. It should be noted that the empire increased by approximately 100,000 square miles each year in the half-century after the Battle of Waterloo. By the turn of the century, almost one quarter of the world's surface was part of it, including India and one third of Africa. The need to maintain control of its colonies, and to guard against threats from rival imperial powers, imposed constant demands on the armed forces. At least until 1907, when a diplomatic understanding was reached with Russia, policymakers were more concerned with the security of India's north-west frontier than with the possible designs of Germany in western Europe.
This article poses two key questions regarding Britain's readiness for war in this period:
* How effective was the organisation of the armed forces, and what provision was made for inter-service cooperation?
* How adequate were the resources that successive governments made available to the armed forces?
Muddling Through?
At the start of our period, responsibility for the army was divided between a number of different government departments. This state of affairs was the product of basic inertia, reinforced by fear of the constitutional consequences of creating an over-powerful military authority. The Secretary for War and the Colonies took responsibility for the direction of troops outside the UK, and tended in practice to be more concerned with the colonial aspect of the portfolio. A junior minister, the Secretary at War, acted as an intermediary between Parliament and the army. A professional soldier, the Commander-in-Chief, had overall control of training, discipline and appointments. The Master-General of Ordnance handled engineers and artillery, whilst the Commissariat, a department of the Treasury, dealt with supplies and transport. The Home Office had influence over troop deployments within the UK.
Although ministers intermittently showed an awareness of the need for reform, little progress was made during the lifetime of Britain's most prestigious soldier, the Duke of Wellington, who served as Master General of the Ordnance in 1818-27 and as Commander-in-Chief in 1827-28 and 1842-52. He expressed the suspicion felt by professionals towards attempts to extend political control over their activities.
The Crimean War, and the...
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