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Montagu Norman

1871 – 1950 British Governor of the Bank of England (1920-1944)

The secretive Bank of England governor who defended the gold standard and led the central bankers' club.

Affiliations
Central figure of the interwar central-bankers' network and a founder of the Bank for International Settlements.

Montagu Norman served a record term as Governor of the Bank of England from 1920 to 1944. He was devoted to the gold standard and steered Britain's 1925 return to gold at the prewar rate. Reserved and often unwell, he ran monetary diplomacy through personal ties with Benjamin Strong and Hjalmar Schacht. His close relationship with Schacht and the 1939 transfer of Czechoslovak gold later drew heavy criticism.

Connections

  • associate of Benjamin Strong — Close friend and collaborator; they vacationed together and coordinated Anglo-American policy.
  • associate of Benjamin Strong — Close friend and main partner in Anglo-American central-bank cooperation.
  • rival of Emile Moreau — Clashed over gold flows and the balance of monetary power.
  • rival of Emile Moreau — Relations were tense as France pressed London over gold.
  • associate of Hjalmar Schacht — Close working relationship between the two central bankers.
  • associate of Hjalmar Schacht — Worked closely with Schacht on central bank matters and the BIS.
  • rival of John Maynard Keynes — Opposed the Bank of England's defense of the gold standard.
  • associate of Thomas McKittrick — Dealt with Norman as a fellow central banking figure.
  • associate of Winston Churchill — Acted on Norman's advice in returning Britain to gold in 1925.

In the timeline

Wikipedia