Economic History Flashcards

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts related to economic history, including the Great Depression, the Bretton Woods Conference, economic theories, and post-WWII impacts.

Black Tuesday

October 29, 1929, the date of the Stock Market Collapse that marked the beginning of the Great Depression.

Buying on Margin

A practice where investors borrow money to buy stocks, expecting to repay the loan with profits from selling the shares; contributed to the Stock Market Collapse of 1929.

Bank Runs

Occurred when people panicked and rushed to withdraw their money from banks during the Great Depression, leading to bank closures.

Relief Camps

Camps set up in remote areas for unemployed men during the Great Depression in Canada.

David Milne

A Canadian painter whose work reflected the hardships of the Great Depression.

John Steinbeck

An American author whose work reflected the hardships of the Great Depression.

Bretton Woods Conference

Conference held in 1944 that led to the creation of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

World Bank

An organization founded in 1944 to help rebuild countries after WWII and support development in poorer countries through long-term loans.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

An organization created at Bretton Woods in 1944 to stabilize international currencies and provide emergency financial help to countries in crisis.

Adam Smith

Considered the Father of Modern Capitalism; believed in free markets and limited government intervention (laissez-faire), as described in his book 'The Wealth of Nations'.

Karl Marx

Considered the Father of Socialism and Communism; believed capitalism creates inequality and advocated for a classless society with shared ownership of resources, as described in 'The Communist Manifesto'.

John Maynard Keynes

Considered the Father of Modern Liberal Economics; believed governments should spend money during recessions to stimulate demand (demand-side economics), as described in 'The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money'.

Milton Friedman

A leader of Monetarism who believed controlling the money supply is the best way to manage the economy and argued against government interference.

Baby Boom

The period from 1946–1964, characterized by a surge in birth rates due to soldiers returning from WWII, economic stability, and cultural focus on the nuclear family.

GI Bill

Helped veterans afford education and housing after WWII in Canada and the Western World.

Laissez-faire

Limited government intervention.

Friedman's Monetarism

Government controls currency in circulation.

Friedrich Hayek

Individualism, free markets, dangers of central planning.

Hayek warned against dangers of collectivism and central planning

Argues that government control over economic decisions = tyranny and loss of individual freedom.

Keynesian Revolution

challenged laissez-faire economics, argued markets don’t always self-correct

The Baby Boom

Birth rates surging between 1946-1964.

Suburbanization

New housing developments offered affordable homes outside cities with the suburban population growing 47%.

IBRD

International Bank For reconstruction and Development:For finance reconstruction of war-torn Europe.

Lord John Maynard Keynes

U.K delegation, led Commission II, dealt with the proposal for a bank for reconstruction and development.

Henry Morgenthau Jr

Conference President: U.S. Treasury Secretary.