Known military inferiority of rivals creates an effective monopoly

Evidence

At a time when most of the world had no first-rate ships at all, Britain kept dozens and dozens in her fleet. During the Napoleonic Wars, for example, Britain had 180 warships of seventy-four guns or larger. The Spanish, Dutch, and French navies all vied for power with Britain at one time or another, but none could match the British navy and, by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Britain alone ruled the seas. For most of the nineteenth century, a period called the “Pax Britannica,” the majority of local conflicts were settled without escalation simply because of the presence of a British warship. As with crabs and caribou, big weapons and deterrence ushered in a window of relative peace. — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 395 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Expensive war-fleet dominance deterred conflict and produced relative peace — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 395; Violence capacity being dichotomous makes the protection market monopolistic; Costly advanced weapons deter rivals just like large animal weapons — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 592 (+2 more)

Related

• Expensive war-fleet dominance deterred conflict and produced relative peace (similarity 0.90)
• British imperial dominance depended on naval supremacy. (similarity 0.84)
• Warship-building cost restrictions turned fleet size into deterrent signals. (similarity 0.80)
• The most expensive weapons serve as deterrents by projecting power globally. (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Expensive war-fleet dominance deterred conflict and produced relative peace #exemplifies (0.88) — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 395
• Violence capacity being dichotomous makes the protection market monopolistic #expands (0.85)
• Dominant powers codified their own practical invulnerability as the overriding war norm #expands (0.82)
• Costly advanced weapons deter rivals just like large animal weapons #exemplifies (0.78) — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 592