During the early and middle 18th Century, the UK’s relationship with Europe was a highly-charged political issue. The Whigs, by and large, felt that French aggression had to be addressed by sending large subsidies and armies to the continent; this was particularly necessary after the Hanoverian succession. The Tories, on the other hand, disliked the large expenses involved in this approach, were skeptical of continental entanglements with unreliable allies, and preferred to put money into the navy to fight the French over colonies.
Does this sound at all familiar? Three hundred years later, it’s SSDD.
There is a 19th Century angle to this, too, that will be discussed next Friday.