The 1931 Sterling Crisis and the Collapse of the Interwar Gold System (1931–1934)

1. Britain restores gold convertibility at prewar parity

   May 10, 1925Labels: Bank of, Gold Standard

   • UK Archives
   • WGC History

2. Creditanstalt collapse spreads Europe-wide banking fears

   May 11, 1931Labels: Creditanstalt, Austria

   • Great Depression timeline

3. Danatbank failure deepens the 1931 European crisis

   Jul 13, 1931Labels: Danatbank, Germany

   • Danatbank profile
   • Anne Frank House

4. Invergordon Mutiny triggers a new run on sterling

   Sep 15, 1931Labels: Invergordon Mutiny, Royal Navy

   • Invergordon Mutiny

5. UK government announces suspension of gold convertibility

   Sep 20, 1931Labels: UK Treasury, Bank of

   • UK Archives
   • LBMA Alchemist

6. Parliament passes Gold Standard (Amendment) Act

   Sep 21, 1931Labels: Gold Standard, UK Parliament

   • Hansard Commons
   • Hansard Lords

7. Sterling exchange rate falls and “sterling area” grows

   Oct 1, 1931Labels: Sterling area, British pound

   • Foreign Affairs

8. Lausanne Conference weakens the reparations framework

   Jun 16, 1932Labels: Lausanne Conference, Reparations

   • Lausanne 1932

9. United States orders domestic gold turned in

   Apr 5, 1933Labels: Executive Order, Franklin D

   • Presidency Project

10. Congress voids most “gold clauses” in contracts

    Jun 5, 1933Labels: U S, Gold clauses

    • U S Mint

11. London Economic Conference fails to stabilize currencies

    Jul 1, 1933Labels: London Economic, United States

    • London Conference

12. Gold Reserve Act centralizes U.S. gold and resets price

    Jan 30, 1934Labels: Gold Reserve, U S

    • Gold Reserve Act