The international monetary system established after World War II, based on fixed exchange rates and the US dollar as the world's reserve currency.
The Great Depression: The economic chaos of the 1930s that led to the need for a new international economic system.
Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points: A set of proposals made by US President Woodrow Wilson at the end of World War I that included a call for international economic cooperation.
Gold standard: A monetary system in which the value of a currency is fixed to a set amount of gold.
John Maynard Keynes: British economist who was a major contributor to the design of the Bretton Woods system.
Harry Dexter White: American economist who was heavily involved in the creation of the Bretton Woods system.
The Atlantic Charter: A statement of principles agreed upon by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in August 1941, including the call for economic cooperation.
The Morgenthau Plan: A controversial proposal by US Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr. to de-industrialize post-war Germany and turn it into an agricultural economy.
The Dumbarton Oaks Conference: A meeting held in August-October 1944 that laid the groundwork for the creation of the United Nations and the Bretton Woods system.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF): An organization created under the Bretton Woods system to stabilize exchange rates and provide loans to member countries.
The World Bank: An organization created under the Bretton Woods system to provide financial assistance to member countries for development projects.
The gold exchange standard: A modified version of the gold standard that was used in the Bretton Woods system.
The Smithsonian Agreement: A 1971 agreement that revalued the US dollar and adjusted exchange rates in the Bretton Woods system.
The collapse of the Bretton Woods system: The breakdown of the system in the 1970s due to various economic and political factors.
The impact of the Bretton Woods system: The legacy of the system on international economics and global financial institutions.
Fixed Exchange Rate System: The original Bretton Woods System established a fixed exchange rate system, which involved the US dollar being pegged to gold at a rate of $35 per ounce, and other currencies pegged to the US dollar. The exchange rates were allowed to fluctuate within a narrow band of +/- 1%.
Smithsonian Agreement: In 1971, due to pressures on the US dollar and rising inflation, the Smithsonian Agreement was implemented. It revalued the US dollar by 7.9% against gold and widened the bands in which currencies could fluctuate to +/- 2.25%.
SDRs: Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were added to the Bretton Woods System in 1969 to supplement existing reserves. SDRs are a form of reserve currency created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and are based on a basket of currencies.
Floating Exchange Rate System: In 1973, the Bretton Woods System collapsed due to a combination of factors, including the Vietnam War, rising oil prices, and inflation. A new era of floating exchange rates was introduced, in which currencies were allowed to float freely against one another.
Smithsonian Redux: In 1973, the Smithsonian agreement was re-negotiated, widening the bands of fluctuation to +/- 4.5% and raising the official gold price to $42.22 per ounce.
Jamaica Agreement: In 1976, the Jamaica Agreement formalized the end of the Bretton Woods System and replaced it with a system of floating exchange rates. It also established the IMF's mandate to oversee global economic stability and financial cooperation.