Golden Fetters: The Gold Standard And The Great... -

: Eichengreen argues that the gold standard was not a stabilizer, but rather the "principal threat" to financial stability. It acted as a "fetter," preventing central banks from lowering interest rates or expanding the money supply to combat the Depression.

: Unlike the pre-WWI gold standard, which relied on central bank cooperation, the interwar version was fragile and lacked credible commitment. Imbalances from WWI and a lack of international coordination made the system brittle. Golden Fetters: The Gold Standard and the Great...

For a deeper dive into these concepts, you can explore these resources: The Gold Standard and the Great Depression, 1919-1939 : Eichengreen argues that the gold standard was

Barry Eichengreen’s book, , is a landmark reassessment of how the international monetary system contributed to the global economic crisis of the 1930s. Key Themes & Arguments Imbalances from WWI and a lack of international

: The system transmitted economic shocks from the United States to the rest of the world. Because countries were committed to fixed exchange rates, a downturn in one major economy forced others to adopt contractionary policies to protect their gold reserves.