British Nuclear Weapons Stockpiles by Year: 1953–77

Abstract

The UK’s 2021 Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy states that the UK will no longer give public figures for its operational nuclear weapons stockpile, deployed warheads or deployed missiles, ending previous policies on transparency. Accurate accounting for historical holdings of nuclear weapons will likely be of importance in any future verifiable nuclear disarmament treaty. The National Archives provide details on the UK’s historical stockpile and its composition, and in this article John R Walker makes an initial tentative estimate of the UK’s annual holdings by weapon type between 1953 and 1977.◼