The Transformation of the Defense Policy of the British Empire in the First Half of the 19th Century

Abstract

In the article there is an investigation of the process of developing new principles for ensuring the security of the British Empire, aimed at the division of responsibility in the field of defense between the metropolis and the colonies. The chronological framework of the work is limited to the first half of the 19th century, when the first steps were taken to develop the theoretical foundations for integrating the colonies into the imperial defense and giving it a collective character. Based on the definition of the term “imperial defense”, its three-stage structure is distinguished. Objective (deterioration of the international situation) and subjective (unwillingness of British taxpayers to finance the defense of the colonies) reasons for integration are investigated. The main directions of the inclusion of colonies in the collective defense of the empire are formulated (“Gray’s plan”, “Godley’s plan”). The reaction of the British political elite (imperialists and anti-imperialists) and the colonies themselves to integration plans is traced. By the middle of the XIX century new principles of imperial defense policy were developed, according to which the metropolis shifted the burden of responsibility for ensuring the internal security of the colonies to the local authorities, and retained the obligation to protect them in the event of an external threat. However, due to the resistance of the imperialists and the unwillingness of the colonies, the new principles could not be fully implemented.

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