Economic History · Divergence
The Gold Standard Era
How gold tied the world's money together from the 1870s to 1914, Hume's price–specie flow, deflation and the 'cross of gold', the failed interwar return, why leaving gold early sped Depression recovery, Bretton Woods and Nixon's 1971 exit.
Step 1 of 6 · Overview30 min read ·
Key idea
Prereqs: What is money; Central banks. Next: Lords of Finance: the interwar central bankers; The postwar boom. Sources: Barry Eichengreen, *Golden Fetters* (1992) and *Globalizing Capital*; Liaquat Ahamed, *Lords of Finance* (2009); Federal Reserve History.Next: 1. Timeline