Ballistic missile carrying submarine HMS Resolution, 1966.

UNITED KINGDOM - JANUARY 09: Cut-away model. In 1962, British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan and United States President John F Kennedy agreed that Britain should have a submarine-based nuclear deterrent capability. The Americans would supply the Polaris missiles, which would be carried by British-built submarines. Four boats of the �Resolution� class were built for the purpose, each of which was fitted with 16 inter-continental ballistic missiles (ICBM) with a range of 2500 nautical miles, putting anywhere in the USSR within range. The submarines were superseded by vessels operating the Trident missile system, and were all decommissioned in the mid 1990s. They had collectively undertaken 229 patrols without ever having been detected or firing any of their missiles in anger. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)