Biography
William Reynolds is an Advanced Education Pathway (AEP) Lecturer in Defence Studies in the Defence Studies Department, King's College London. Graduating with a Bachelors in War Studies, and Masters in National Security Studies from the same department, Will completed his PhD in War Studies in 2023 through the Interrogating Visions of a Post-Western World Leverhulme program hosted by the Centre for Grand Strategy.
Will's research focuses on British and Japanese interactions at the grand strategic level, with his doctoral thesis – ‘The Japanese Phenomenon’: British Grand Strategy’s Influence on Policy Towards Japan from 1945 to 1993 – tracing the making of British grand strategy, its priorities, and its connections with British policies towards Japan during the Cold War. Will's current research is a continuation of his thesis, dividing time between certain aspects of the Anglo-Japanese relationship – geopolitical, defence, strategy making, etc – and elements of British grand strategy post-1945.
Will has also conducted research work in collaboration with the Cabinet Office's Strategy Unit, having taken part in the Cabinet Office-Centre for Grand Strategy Doctoral Student Placement Programme during his PhD from 2020 to 2022. This was continued in 2024 with a Research England Policy Support funded project - Understanding UK Strategic Defence Reviews since 1998: Planning, Implementing, and Learning from Outcomes - which involved close collaboration with partners in the Cabinet Office's Strategy Unit.
Research Interests
- 20th Century British Foreign Policy
- Post-1945 British Grand Strategy
- Post-1945 Anglo-Japanese Relations
- Indo-Pacific Geopolitics
- The Cod Wars
- Grand Strategy
Recent Publications
Articles
- 'The Review, Defence and the Indo-Pacific ‘Tilt’: Constraining and Engaging in the Region' in Joe Devanny and John Gearson, eds., The Integrated Review in Context: Defence and Security in Focus - School of Security Studies, King's College London (October, 2021)
Book Chapters
Policy Briefs