BACKGROUND: The 1930s was a period not only of great political upheaval but also of grave financial and economic difficulty. The gold standard was largely abandoned, and currency exchange rates fluctuated wildly. Economic chaos was aggravated by a lack of coordination between governments that imposed controls on international financial transactions and engaged in ruthless economic warfare.

During World War II, most countries realized that they would emerge from the conflict with depleted economic resources just when they would have to confront a reconstruction effort of staggering dimensions. It was also known that the United Kingdom would emerge from the war as the world's principal debtor nation and the United States, whose productive capacity had greatly increased during the war, as the world's principal creditor nation.

Creation

The United Kingdom, the United States, and their allies were convinced that international economic...