This section covers the following topics

• Causes of the Great Depression
• Hoover’s response
• FDR and the first 100 days
• Resistance to the New Deal
• The Second New Deal
• The end of the New Deal
• Movement toward WWII
• US intervention
• WWII
• Life on the home front

Section Summary

America’s economic prosperity quickly failed with the advent of the Great Depression, which was caused by buying on leverage, bank failures, weakness in the agricultural sector, stratification of wealth and high tariffs. President Hoover’s response was not enough, and he was replaced in the next election by Franklin Roosevelt. FDR put his New Deal program into effect in a flurry of legislation known as “the first 100 days.” He declared a bank holiday to “inspect”’ banks while insuring bank accounts up to $5,000. He also created a number of new agencies, such as the AAA and NIRA. The Second New Deal saw the creation of Social Security and the WPA. Resistance to the New Deal was led by Father Charles Coughlin, Dr. Francis Townsend and Senator Huey Long. The end of the New Deal began when the Supreme Court began declaring many of the new agencies unconstitutional. FDR’s attempts to pack the Court further cost him in political capital. Money was also transferred from New Deal programs to the military out of fear that Europe would again go to war.

Many attempts were made to prevent another world war. The Kellogg-Briand Peace Pact was created, and was accompanied by an easing of US-Central and South American relations under the Clark Memorandum and Good Neighbor Policy. However, problems due to an unstable series of debts between the US, Germany and England were compounded by the Hawley-Smoot Tariff, which led to a German economic collapse and paved the way for Hitler’s takeover. To the west, Japan met with the US and other major powers at the Washington Naval Conference, but then quickly invaded China and erected a... Sign up to continue reading The Great Depression and WWII >

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