Taking British Power Seriously
DARC is seeking to commission a new collection of papers on the revitalisation of British hard power.
£1,500 stipends are available for working papers. Papers may be published pseudonymously. DM @DefenseAnalyses or email contact@defenseanalyses.org for further information.
We are living in a hard power century. Large-scale warfare has returned as a central feature of European statecraft. The post-Cold War security order is collapsing as the United States pivots towards a revitalised Monroe Doctrine. Peer and near-peer adversaries now contest military, industrial, technological, and informational domains simultaneously. The British homeland itself is increasingly exposed to coercion, disruption, and attack.
Yet Britain’s material foundations for national power have not kept pace with the dangerous realities of the international scene.
The United Kingdom remains rhetorically committed to bold principles of deterrence, alliance leadership, and global influence. In practice, however, decades of deindustrialisation, procurement dysfunction, and manpower shortages have left the country struggling to maintain real capability. The result is a growing reliance on flimsy substitutes for hard power and a willingness to ignore painful realities altogether. The obsessive focus of the Westminster class on “soft power” represents a weak bid at maintaining some semblance of national importance, even as real security vaporises before our very eyes.
This moment demands a new generation of British defence intellectuals who take the paramount importance of the nation’s hard power seriously. Why exactly has the nation’s ability to turn out ships, shells, and munitions faltered? What must be rebuilt to maintain domestic security and advance British interests abroad?
These challenges are no longer abstract or distant. They include an underfunded and undermanned military, the erosion of power projection post-Chagos, the incursion of foreign intelligence interests into domestic infrastructure, and the ability to maintain a successful nuclear deterrent. Each of these ultimately resolves into questions of force, production, endurance, and command.
DARC is seeking papers that interrogate the mismatch between Britain’s strategic needs and its existing hard-power base, and that explore concrete pathways for renewal.
Areas of Interest
We are receptive to a wide range of iconoclastic analytical, historical, and forward-looking work that would not be published elsewhere. Areas of particular interest include, but are not limited to:
The Industrial Base
Examine the erosion of Britain’s defence-industrial capacity, its implications for sustained conflict, and where the nation must focus if it is to rebuild some of this capacity. What must be rebuilt domestically? Where can allies substitute, and where can they not? Is “re-armament” possible without re-industrialisation? Investigate whether the UK’s defence procurement system is fit for purpose in a competitive, wartime environment. Is reform sufficient, or is institutional replacement required?
Manpower, Recruitment, and Retention
Assess recruitment, retention, and the professional culture of the British armed forces. What social, institutional, or economic constraints now limit Britain’s ability to field and sustain a fighting force? Does the British military retain sufficient manpower, depth of expertise, and resilience to domestic instability? What trade-offs between readiness, modernisation, and scale are unavoidable? We are particularly interested in hearing from current and former members of the Ministry of Defence who can effectively pinpoint the organisational pathologies at work here.
Maritime Power, Air Defence, and the Island State
Reconsider Britain’s maritime identity and naval posture. How should the UK think about sea control, undersea infrastructure, littoral defence, and global presence as an island trading nation in an era of contested oceans? Explore the implications of missile proliferation, drone warfare, and air-defence saturation for UK security. What does air superiority mean now, and how should Britain invest accordingly? What roles can drones play in domestic political concerns? What is the world’s understanding of the UK as a nuclear power, and what is the reality?
Homeland Resilience
Analyse the growing exposure of the British homeland to disruption from cyber attacks and energy coercion to undersea sabotage and sectarian violence. What does credible homeland defense require in material terms? What effects would a war abroad have on domestic stability? How can Britain preemptively counteract foreign threats intent on disrupting domestic security across all levels of sophistication? How might enmeshed Russian, Chinese, and Middle Eastern commercial interests adverse to the British interest be removed?
Britain in NATO and Beyond
Interrogate Britain’s role within NATO as U.S. priorities shift. What forms of hard power most credibly reinforce alliance leadership? Where does Britain risk becoming strategically decorative rather than decisive? How can Britain work with allies in new and unique ways to further its national security? What role does the leader of the Commonwealth play in international defence strategy? With America focused more and more on the Pacific theatre, who will keep an eye on the Atlantic? How should Britain navigate the prioritisation of “civilizational alliances” articulated in the recent US National Security Strategy?
Submission Guidelines
We are seeking proposals no later than February 6th, 2026, with drafts being completed by February 27th, 2026. Honoraria will be £1,500 for a piece of approximately 2,000 to 4,000 words, though additional budget is available for more extensive work.
A closed-door event with all published authors and key stakeholders will be held in Westminster in Spring 2026 to discuss next steps in this work.
Please reach out to contact@defenseanalyses.org or via DM @defenseanalyses with any questions. We encourage you to reach out to discuss further.