The British Nuclear Experience (Daniel 7)

 Britain, political leadership, and nuclear weapons

BY JOHN BAYLIS AND KRISTAN STODDART
APRIL 10TH 2015

The beliefs of British Prime Ministers since 1941 about the nation’s security and role in the world have been of critical importance in understanding the development and retention of a nuclear capability.

Winston Churchill supported the development as a means of national survival during the Second World War. Attlee took the decision to develop a nuclear deterrent in 1947. Churchill, on returning to power in the early 1950s, was a strong supporter of developing thermonuclear weapons. Eden and Macmillan continued Churchill’s policies of trying to develop close nuclear ties with the United States, culminating in the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement and the 1962 Nassau Agreement and 1963 Polaris Sales Agreement. Douglas-Home strongly supported Britain’s nuclear status as a means of highlighting Britain’s world role. Harold Wilson, after threatening to renegotiate the Nassau Agreement continued with the Polaris programme. In the early 1970s, Ted Heath flirted with the idea of some form of Anglo-French nuclear capability, but ultimately settled for a continuation of the close Anglo-American special nuclear relationship. On returning to office, Wilson secretly pursued the Chevaline improvement to Polaris, despite indications that the independent deterrent would not be renewed. This policy was continued by James Callaghan, even to the point where, had he remained in office, a successor to Polaris was close to being agreed with Jimmy Carter, the US President. It was left to his successor, Margaret Thatcher, to conclude the Trident C-4 and D-5 Agreements in 1980 and 1982. Those Agreements were subsequently supported by John Major and the governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown began the debate about the replacement of Trident. During David Cameron’s Coalition Government from 2010 there has been a clear determination to move on to a like-for-like replacement of Trident following the General Election in May 2015.