Britain turned its biggest weakness into the source of its power - Sarah Paine

The British are the real pioneers of maritime empire because the Britain have this 360-degree moat. They're the only power in Europe that doesn't need to maintain a large standing army. Because if Britain could maintain a competent navy, no army is going to reach British shores cuz they're going to be drowned at sea.

So that Britain could take a weakness, its dependence on trade, and turn into strength. So the trade is going to finance the navy. It's going to protect both British homeland and some of the trade. And then Britain is going to be compounding wealth while its neighbors are busy a they neighbors have to fund large armies that are going to be constantly fighting with each other and destroying wealth in the process.

So while a navy could provide Britain with a prevent defeat strategy, i.e. no one's going to get to Britain. A navy is insufficient for a deliver victory strategy. It's not going to eliminate these continental problems. But if Britain can keep compounding wealth over time and then its neighbors are busy busy destroying wealth at a rapid clip, then the difference in wealth is going to get larger and in that sense things will get better for Britain.