Full-text resources of CEJSH and other databases are now available in the new Library of Science.
Visit https://bibliotekanauki.pl

Results found: 2

first rewind previous Page / 1 next fast forward last

Search results

help Sort By:

help Limit search:
first rewind previous Page / 1 next fast forward last
1

Financial Reconstruction in Central and Eastern Europe after World War I: The Case of Hungary

100%
Domonkos E., Schlett A.
West Bohemian Historical Review
|
2021
|
vol. 11
|
issue 2
209-234
EN
The First World War and the dismemberment of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy had profound impacts on the further development of East Central Europe both economically and politically. In October 1918, the former self-sufficient economic unit broke into six different entities, which meant that the countries of the region had to adjust to the new circumstances. Post-war economic chaos was exacerbated by rampant inflation – except in Czechoslovakia – coupled with increasing budgetary problems caused by war expenditures. Additionally, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, Poland, and Romania had suffered very considerable war damages, which hindered their economic recovery. At the beginning of the 1920s, financial consolidation became an urgent task for all countries of the region, which coincided with the interests of the victorious Great Powers in the post-war years. This paper seeks to evaluate the consequences of the reconstruction schemes in the countries of East Central Europe. Because of the low level of domestic accumulation, stabilisation could be carried out by the loans of the League of Nations. The only exception was Czechoslovakia, which was able to halt inflation and introduce stable currency in April 1919 without any external assistance. As far as financial consolidation is concerned, the study also focuses on analysing the case of Hungary by introducing the main features of the stabilisation measures in the 1920s. The Hungarian stabilisation in 1924 also performed under the control of the League of Nations. The second part of the study presents the conditions of the loan extended by the League of Nations, analyses the elements of the stabilisation both in the budgetary and monetary sectors, as well as the features of the currency system established with English mediation. Because of length constraints, the paper will not give an insight into the domestic politics of East Central Europe during the interwar period, rather it strives to represent the results of financial reconstruction in the region from macroeconomic perspective.
2

Inflation and Stabilisation in Central and Eastern Europe after World War II: The Case of Hungary

100%
Domonkos E., Schlett A.
West Bohemian Historical Review
|
2023
|
vol. 13
|
issue 2
203-235
EN
The Central and Eastern European countries were hit by severe devastation and destruction caused by World War II. Besides war damages, Eastern Europe also suffered from a general shortage of basic foodstuffs and commodities. Economic recovery in the defeated countries of the region (Hungary, Bulgaria, East Germany, and Romania) was hindered by war reparations. The Soviets used reparation payments as a political tool to destroy the economic pillars of the independence of Central and Eastern Europe. After World War II, most industrial equipment and machinery were dismantled and shipped to the USSR as war booty. The paper’s objective is to analyse the background of financial reconstruction in Central and Eastern Europe after 1945 by considering the burdens of war reparations and the financial obligations of the defeated countries in the region. Besides war costs, a significant part of the national resources and income were destroyed. The collapse of production, the shortage of goods, and at the same time, the increase in money in circulation have served as a favourable situation for accelerating inflation. Reparations diverted substantial resources from the financial reconstruction after the initial postwar period. The assumption of the essay is that both excessive reparation burdens and arbitrary deliveries to the Soviet Union contributed to the rising level of inflation and the paralysis of economic activity in many countries, including the Soviet occupation zone of Germany, Hungary, and Romania. Inflation accelerated everywhere, but there were significant differences. Various attempts were made in each country to roll back inflation and financial stabilisation. In parallel with the introduction of financial reconstruction in the countries of the region, the main reasons for hyperinflation in Hungary will be analysed based on the data from archives and relevant literature overview. In the spring and summer of 1946, one of the most ferocious inflations in the world raged in Hungary. Solving the hyperinflation process contained numerous elements, so people recognised the significance of inflation events in Hungarian money history from the aspect of money theory. So, not only was the extent of the Hungarian depreciation regarded and is regarded now to be unique in the world, but economic experts also mentioned the prepared stabilisation beyond inflationary circumstances and the executed stabilisation from ordinary resources, the establishment of a stable currency, the forint, as a “miracle”.
first rewind previous Page / 1 next fast forward last
JavaScript is turned off in your web browser. Turn it on to take full advantage of this site, then refresh the page.