A Review Essay: David Kynaston's Till Time's Last Sand:: a history of the Bank of England, 1694-2013

Bean, Charles R. ORCID: 0000-0002-6524-8280 (2019) A Review Essay: David Kynaston's Till Time's Last Sand:: a history of the Bank of England, 1694-2013. Journal of Economic Literature, 57 (4). pp. 972-987. ISSN 0022-0515

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Abstract

This essay reviews Till Time's Last Sand: A History of the Bank of England, 1694-2013, David Kynaston's history of the Bank of England (the Bank) from its foundation in 1694 to the present day. I focus on three themes running through his narrative. First, for much of that time, the Bank was a private company playing a public role; how did it manage to do this and why was it eventually brought into public ownership? Second, I examine the various attempts to constrain the Bank's monetary policy to follow a simple rule; these almost invariably proved unsustainable unless the rule provided enough room for discretion. Finally, I cover the Bank's journey to becoming the lender of last resort, together with its evolving attitude to the associated risk of moral hazard.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://www.aeaweb.org/journals/jel
Additional Information:	© 2018 American Economic Association
Divisions:	Economics
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions H Social Sciences > HG Finance
JEL classification:	E - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics > E5 - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit > E52 - Monetary Policy (Targets, Instruments, and Effects) E - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics > E5 - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit > E58 - Central Banks and Their Policies G - Financial Economics > G1 - General Financial Markets N - Economic History > N1 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Growth and Fluctuations > N13 - Europe: Pre-1913 N - Economic History > N1 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Growth and Fluctuations > N14 - Europe: 1913- N - Economic History > N2 - Financial Markets and Institutions > N23 - Europe: Pre-1913 N - Economic History > N2 - Financial Markets and Institutions > N24 - Europe: 1913-
Date Deposited:	29 Oct 2018 15:16
Last Modified:	29 Jan 2025 03:21
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/90516

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