The end of the gold standard and the beginning of the recovery from the Great Depression

Jason Lennard and Meredith Paker in this voxeu research reflect on the 80th anniversary of the BW conference:

2024 marks the 80th anniversary of the Bretton Woods conference, which led to a major shift from the operation of the gold standard in the interwar years. This column explores how Britain’s 1931 departure from the gold standard impacted the interwar British economy through its effects on unemployment. The findings suggest that leaving the gold standard ahead of other leading nations such as the US and France led to a major devaluation that decisively benefited Britain’s economy and started its recovery from the Great Depression.