This collection of essays by the eminent financial and monetary historians Forrest Capie and Geoffrey Wood examines and offers explanations of the parts played by money and the banking system in the British economy over the last two centuries.

Structured in three chronological parts, it covers: the period of the classical gold standard from 1870 until the First World War, and the associated key issues of the time; the troublesome interwar years, when there was a breakdown in the international economy, the Second World War and immediate post-War years; and the international dimensions of the post-War period up to the present day. It deals with financial crises, periods of stability, and Britain in the international system, and covers topics such as debt management, money and the exchange rate, interest rates and velocity, as well as central bank independence, monetary unions, price controls and the role of the IMF.

Combining empirical research and economic theory, this timely publication is essential reading for all scholars of financial, monetary, and economic history.