The Battle of Bretton Woods

Winner of the 2013 Spear's Book Award in Financial History Co-Winner of the 2014 Bronze Medal in Economics, Axiom Business Book Awards One of The Motley Fool's (John Reeves) 10 Great Books on American Economic History One of Financial Times (FT.com) Best History Books of 2013 One of Bloomberg News' Top Business Books of 2013 One of Kirkus Reviews' Best Nonfiction Books of the Year for 2013 in Business and Economics One of Bloomberg/Businessweek Best Books of 2013, as selected individually by Fredrik Erixon, Scott Minerd, Olli Rehn and Alan Greenspan Featured in The Sunday Times 2013 Holiday Roundup Shortlisted for the 2013 800-CEO-READ Business Book Awards in Finance & Economics Honorable Mention for the 2014 Arthur Ross Book Award, Council on Foreign Relations Shortlisted for the 2014 Lionel Gelber Prize, Lionel Gelber Foundation "The Battle of Bretton Woods should become the gold standard on its topic. The details are addictive."--Fred Andrews, New York Times "Steil, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, understands the economic issues at stake and has done meticulous research on the history. Every good story that has ever been told about the major actors involved and the happening itself is in his book, and a few more besides. For those who come fresh to the subject, and even for those who know most of it, it is an excellent and revealing account."--Robert Skidelsky, New York Review of Books "A superb history. Mr. Steil ... is a talented storyteller."--James Grant, Wall Street Journal "[A] masterful (and readable) account of American realpolitik and British delusion."--Andrew Hilton, Financial World "Steil's book, engaging and entertaining, perceptive and instructive, is a triumph of economic and diplomatic history. Everything is here: political chicanery, bureaucratic skulduggery, espionage, hard economic detail and the acid humour of men making history under pressure."--Tony Barber, Financial Times "This is a fantastic book. Gold and money, two of my favorite topics. It's also brilliantly insightful history, and a gripping spy thriller to boot."--Larry Kudlow, CNBC "[T]he author masterfully translates the arcana of competing theories of monetary policy, and a final chapter explains how, while some of the institutions created by Bretton Woods endure--the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund--many of the conference's assumptions were swiftly overtaken by the Marshall Plan. Throughout Steil's sharp discussion runs the intriguing subplot of White's career-long, secret relationship with Soviet intelligence. A vivid, highly informed portrayal of the personalities, politics and policies dominating 'the most important international gathering since the Paris Peace Conference of 1919.'"--Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "In his masterful account, The Battle of Bretton Woods, Steil situates the conference firmly in the tense, heightened atmosphere of the final months of World War II... Steil's book comes alive in his description of [Keynes' and White's] contrasting experiences at the conference."--Sam Knight, Bloomberg News "[H]ypnotically readable."--Peter Passell, Milken Institute Review "[T]hought provoking and well written."--Kathleen Burk, Literary Review "This is an excellent book... [It] also contains some explosive revelations about White's work as a Soviet spy, very well documented I might add."--Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution "If you think economics and finance are dry subjects at best, Steil's book offers a refreshing surprise. It's a political thriller in which the protagonists, one whom you think you know and one whom you probably don't, are much more intriguing (in both senses of the word) than they first appear."--Daniel Altman, Big Think "[I]n a new book explaining what really ha

Benn Steil is senior fellow and director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations. His previous book, Money, Markets, and Sovereignty, was awarded the 2010 Hayek Book Prize.

Acknowledgments ix Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Chapter 2: The World Comes to the White Mountains 9 Chapter 3: The Improbable Rise of Harry White 17 Chapter 4: Maynard Keynes and the Monetary Menace 61 Chapter 5: "The Most Unsordid Act" 99 Chapter 6: The Best-Laid Plans of White and Keynes 125 Chapter 7: Whitewash 155 Chapter 8: History Is Made 201 Chapter 9: Begging Like Fala 251 Chapter 10: Out with the Old Order, In with the New 293 Chapter 11: Epilogue 330 Appendix 1: Harry Dexter White Manuscript Photos 349 Appendix 2: Statement of Harry S. Truman on Harry Dexter White, 1953 351 Cast of Characters 355 Notes 371 References 407 Index 427