ABSTRACT
The nature of British defence policy since 1945 has been characterized largely by the process of continual adaptation to the changing circumstances and problems caused by the devolution of Empire. Fundamental changes in Britain’s foreign policy throughout the post-war period have led inevitably to important changes in the defence sector. The immediate post-war period was essentially one of transition and uncertainty in defence policy as planners attempted to take stock of the changed external and domestic circumstances in the post-war world. The constant adjustment and search for a new role and the pressures on the services performing many different operations have to a large extent been a consequence of the imbalance which has existed for much of the post-war period between commitments and capabilities. The problem for British defence planners, which does not seem to have been immediately recognised, was that it also deprived her of Indian military manpower which had been traditionally used to garrison the Empire.
