Kennedy argues that a strong national confidence shaped British attitudes towards military preparedness before the Second World War. In his account, repeated historical experiences of recovering from early setbacks encouraged a belief that Britain could ultimately prevail, even when initially unprepared. This confidence could provide resilience during crises, but Kennedy suggests that it also reduced the sense of urgency surrounding rearmament.

The quotation therefore links public psychology with political and military readiness. Kennedy’s point is not simply that people were indifferent to danger, but that many were reluctant to accept significant personal sacrifices until the threat appeared unmistakable. In the wider argument of Why England Slept, this helps explain why democratic governments faced difficulty mobilising support for costly defence measures during the 1930s. The passage illustrates how shared historical beliefs and perceptions of risk can influence a society’s willingness to prepare for threats before they become immediate.

Full quotation

“No discussion of Britain’s psychology would be complete unless some mention were made of the natural feeling of confidence, even of superiority, that every Englishman feels and to which many Americans object. This feeling, while it is an invaluable asset in bearing up under disaster, has had a great effect on the need Britain felt for rearming. The idea that Britain loses every battle except the last has proved correct so many times in the past that the average Englishman is unwilling to make great personal sacrifices until the danger is overwhelmingly apparent. This notion that God will make a special effort to look after England, and that she will muddle through, took a great toll of the British rearmament efforts of the Thirties.”