A Domestic History of the Bank of England, 1930–1960

This book describes the internal workings of the Bank of England from 1930 to 1960 under three governors.

Elizabeth Hennessy (Author)

9780521073585, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 28 August 2008

472 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 2.7 cm, 0.69 kg

This book, which is based on the Bank of England's own mainly unpublished archives, describes the internal workings of the bank from 1930 to 1960 under three governors, Lord Norman, Lord Catto and Lord Cobbold. Each chapter is devoted to the organisation and working methods of a particular department, such as Cashier's, Accountant's (now Registrar's), the Printing Works, Overseas, and so on, and the book includes the first published description of how the bank continued working during the Second World War, when many of its staff were evacuated to Hampshire and elsewhere. The book also contains information on the bank's accounting methods and profitability, and on the note issue including bank note design. These decades were a period of enormous change for the Bank, when its working methods (many dating back almost to its foundation in 1694) were radically updated and in some cases mechanised in a progression of record-keeping from handwritten ledgers to computers.

1. The Bank at war
2. The Accountant's Department
3. Exchange Control, 1939–1957
4. The note issue
5. The Printing Works
6. The Banking Department and the profitability of the Bank
7. The Cashier's Department
8. The Branches
9. Overseas, Economics and Statistics
10. The Establishment Department
11. The Secretary's Department.

Subject Areas: Banking [KFFK], Economic history [KCZ], Social & cultural history [HBTB], 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], British & Irish history [HBJD1]