ABSTRACT
From Britain's perspective, the economic dimension to the 'German problem' was present long before the onset of the Great Depression. Under the impact of the financial crisis of 1931 the cancellation of reparations before the end of the Hoover Year became a major objective of policy towards Germany. Distracted by imperial concerns, Britain was slow to identify the political dangers which were inherent in the economic dislocation of Germany. The concurrent revolution in Britain’s external economic policies had a more direct and adverse effect on Germany. Nazi attitudes towards the servicing of Germany’s medium- and long-term foreign debts ensured that the issue would move from the private and institutional sphere into the realm of international politics. In the second half of the 1930s the thrust of British policy was mostly in the direction of seeking to foster agreements between British and German industry and to tackle the growing problem of competition in world export markets.
