A History of International Monetary Diplomacy, 1867 to the Present: The Rise of the Guardian State and Economic Sovereignty in a Globalizing World

Description

This book is about how the rise of democracy has transformed economics over the past 150 years. As voting was expanded to the masses in the late 19th century, political leaders faced emergent pressures to deliver prosperity to their newly enfranchised populations. This led to the rise of the guardian state: a state whose prime directive was to protect economic growth and employment. Domestic economic goals now became sacrosanct, and if that meant a failure on the international stage to construct solutions to problems in monetary relations, so be it. The book traces the history of international monetary diplomacy during this long period to show how the guardian state has manifested itself, and how it has shaped the course of international monetary relations. Each of the most important international monetary conferences in history is scrutinized with respect to how nations sought to protect the prosperity within their national economies. The historical narratives give a bird’s-eye view into how domestic political priorities have intruded on and shaped economic relations among nations. The book clearly demonstrates the advantages of an interdisciplinary understanding of how politics shapes economics. It will be invaluable reading for scholars and students of international economics, politics and economic history. Cover Half Title Series Information Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of Contents Figure Tables About the Author Acknowledgments Introduction Introducing the Book Methodology and Theoretical Contributions Plan of the Book Notes 1 The Rise of the Guardian State and Structural Change in the Global Political Economy Market Society and the Night Watchman State: the 19th Century and the Classical Liberal Consensus The Causal Mechanism in the Historical Transition From Market Society to the Prosperous Society: Class Relations and Class Conflict in Modern Capitalism The New Macroeconomic Landscape Under the Prosperous Society Inflation The Size of Government The Goals: Growth and Employment Notes 2 The 19th Century Conferences Monetary Diplomacy in the 19th Century The Conference of 1867 The Conference of 1878 The Conference of 1881 The Conference of 1892 Guardianship and Monetary Diplomacy of the 19th Century Notes 3 The Interwar Conferences: Genoa and London Genoa Conference of 1922: the Emergence of a Guardian Ideology The London Conference of 1933: Consolidating a Guardian Ideology The Interwar Conferences Notes 4 Mature Guardianship: Bretton Woods Notes 5 Guardianship Under Monetary Imperialism: The Smithsonian Conference Notes 6 Guardianship in the Monetary Feudalism of the Nonsystem: Monetary Imperialism Part Two at plaza and Louvre–and Beyond Plaza Louvre Guardianship Beyond Louvre Notes 7 Reflecting on a Century of Guardianship: Patterns and Implications Guardianship and Prisoner’s Dilemmas Hegemony Smagemony Monetary Regimes Require Cooperation and Leadership Rather than Hegemony Moving Forward in the Guardian Age Notes Statistical Appendix Bibliography Index