In October 1948, Winston Churchill – by then an elder statesman and leader of the opposition – set out his mature framework for British foreign policy at the Conservative Party conference in Llandudno, Wales: As I look out upon the future of our country in the changing scene of human destiny I feel the existence of three great circles among the free nations and democracies. […] The first circle for us is naturally the British Commonwealth and Empire, with all that that comprises.
