Following the Great Exhibition in 1851, key offices within the British Government were tasked with compiling information about state of the Empire, it's assets and more importantly it's enemies. After he withdrew from public office the former Lord President of the Council; Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch[1] had used his influence behind the scenes to ensure the completion of the Dossier for the relatively new monarch. The Buccleuch Dossier as it became known in inner circles was a top secret proposal for the protection of the British Empire first presented to Her Majesty Queen Victoria in the summer of 1853. The main body of the document detailed potential troubles that the Empire may face both at home and in the Colonies. Some of these troubles were mundane in nature; suspected native rebellions[2] for example.
