ABSTRACT
The case for overseas expansion and a commitment to military efficiency prevailed by the 1810s despite doubts about the value, political morality, and viability of empire. Significant groups in Britain pressed for overseas action. So, too, the limitations of British military and naval capability need to be weighed against exaggerated expectations of military efficiency and scale created by the French Revolution. Moreover, the idea of military competence needs assessing against the challenges of higher command posed by Britain’s global interests and role. Despite the anti-militarism of much British political rhetoric and practice, and despite the drive to constrain the military which informed British governance, pressures to use war as an instrument of policy and the relative effectiveness of British armed forces need equal acknowledgement. This chapter will argue that war was central to the expansion of empire in this period by considering prevailing assumptions about Britain’s military performance and therefore reputation.
