British Currency School: Difference between revisions

After a long period of deflation following the Napoleonic War, the [[Bank Charter Act 1844|Bank Charter Act of 1844]] was passed. This Act allowed only the Bank of England to print money and required all banks to hold a specific amount of reserve and currency. However, crucially, the Bank of England was only allowed to print new banknotes to the extent that they were backed by additional gold reserves. This act was passed under the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] government of [[Robert Peel]]. The leading figure of the school was [[Samuel Jones-Loyd, Baron Overstone]], the British politician and banker. More than fifty years later his role in the debate was analyzed and criticized by [[Henry Meulen]], an opponent of the Act. See [http://oll.libertyfund.org/?option=com_staticxt&staticfile=show.php%3Ftitle=1414&chapter=45564&layout=html&Itemid=27 Viner's book] .