Empires decline when their military reach outpaces their political strategy, when their economic foundations weaken, and when the people they seek to dominate endure long enough to outlast their overwhelming force.

The nationalisation of the Suez Canal in 1956 marked such a turning point for the British Empire. The crisis exposed Britain’s financial vulnerability, as US pressure triggered a run on sterling that hastened its decline as a global reserve currency and forced imperial retreat.

Seventy years later, the escalating confrontation centred on the Strait of Hormuz may signal a comparable moment for American power in the Middle East.