...1. The Gold Standard was the equivalence of the county’s currency in exchange for gold. For example, in 1933, the United States price of gold was $20.67. Domestically The Gold Standard regulated the quantity and growth rate of a country’s money supply, and internationally it determined exchange rates for participating countries as well. Because these exchange rates were fixed, this cause the price levels around the world to move together through an automatic balance-of-payments adjustment process. If one country was able to increase its production rate, this would cause a drop in prices, which would lead to more exports and the transfer of money from one country to another. The Gold Standard assured long-term price stability, but it also caused prices to be very unstable in the short-term. This is because of gold discoveries occurring around the world at unpredictable times. Many counties also did not follow the “Rules of the Game”, which caused the Gold Standard to be un-credible at times. 2. In 1834, the United States switched to the gold de facto and in 1900 the United States Congress passed the Gold Standard Act. The gold de facto, replaced a bimetallic system, which included the use of gold and silver. Gold was used throughout the years domestically, with examples like in 1933 when Roosevelt nationalized gold owned by private citizens and abrogated contracts in which the payment would be in gold. The Gold Standard broke down during WWI, when the value of gold was at half...
Words: 580 - Pages: 3
...without the consent of the colonists. As the Molasses Act was ending in 1764, Prime Minister George Grenville decided to renew if under a different name, The Sugar Act. Knowing that the colonists did not following the Molasses Act, this one would be strongly enforced. As the price of Molasses dropped so did the need to smuggle and this began to hurt the already impoverished colonists. One of the many ways colonists began to show their anger was to boycott British goods. They also began purchasing from other countries, which began to outrage King George. The Currency Act of 1764 passed by Prime Minister George Grenville prohibited the use of all paper money. This affected all colonists and in turn made their debt overwhelming. However, the Prime Minister did not stop there and passed the Stamp Act. This Act required all paper goods to have the British Seal affixed to it in order to be a legal document. The colonists were outraged and began to violently riot. While the previous Sugar Act affected trade, this new act affected colonist directly. There was no representation for colonists and as they began to voice their concerns, Parliament felt that it was “superfluous.” This once again irritated the colonists and they began to develop organized protests. The amount of colonists that united was growing and their pressure against stamp agents had many backing away from implementing it. What became known as the Stamp Act Congress represented all but four colonies as they...
Words: 823 - Pages: 4
...Background The Defeat of the Ottomans During World War 1, a British High Commissioner, Henry McMahon, convinced Hussein Ibn ‘Ali, the Ottoman governor of Mecca and Medina, to lead an Arab revolt against the Ottoman empire which was aligned with Germany against France and Britain. McMahon promised that if the Arabs supported Britain, the Arab areas that were ruled by the Ottoman empire would be supported by the British government. A British army officer, Thomas Edward Lawrence and Faysal, Hussein’s son, led an Arab revolt which defeated the Ottomans successfully. McMahon and Hussein exchanged a series of letters from 1915 to 1916. The Arabs claimed that in the letters, the British had promised that Hussein would rule as King over an Arab kingdom which included the land of Palestine. The Balfour Declaration In 1917, Lord Arthur Balfour, the British Foreign Minister, announced Britain’s support for an establishment of a “Jewish national home in Palestine”. This declaration is known as the Balfour Declaration. An Unfulfilled Promise A region was separated into two in 1921: The west of the Jordan river turned into the Palestine mandate and the Eastern side of the Jordan river turned into the Emirate of Transjordan, to be controlled by Abdallah, Faysal’s brother. Palestine became a united political area for the first time in modern history during this moment. Britain failed to fulfill their promise to make an independent Arab state throughout the separated region. Clashes broke...
Words: 1083 - Pages: 5
...There is no doubt that the Founding Fathers and colonists had multiple reasons for turning against the British government. They believed that the British were treating colonists unfairly. The British passed many tax laws that were detrimental to the colonists. Unfair Taxation, the intolerable acts, and most importantly the king did not address the concerns of the colonists. I can understand the point of view of the colonists, they had no say in how the taxes were collected and spent. Furthermore, acts such as the stamp act of 1765 taxed common goods such as newspapers, pamphlets, and cards. Moreover, Parliament was not willing to give colonists which considered themselves British subjects a seat in parliament. Consequently, in order to try and get parliament to listen, many riots, boycotts, and protests such as the Boston Tea Party occurred. It is easy to see why the colonists thought that taxes were unfair. However, some people believed that American colonists paid fair taxes since the government supported and defended the colonists. But, the British government, had Laws which taxed common goods and controlled their trade. Which in turn, caused the colonists to become alarmed and think that these laws threatened the right to govern themselves. Equally important, the intolerable acts were passed in Massachusetts as a consequence of many protests and disturbances that occurred. Britain thought that the riots were just isolated incidents in Massachusetts. Thus, the acts were...
Words: 607 - Pages: 3
