[Fiji Hill]

To understand why, first remember the “roaring twenties” and the Great Depression. The roaring twenties resulted largely from British & French war debts to the US paid back during those years. But the money actually came from German reparations payments, so as long as those payments continued, Wall Street and the US economy “roared”.

When payments ended in 1929, first Wall Street, then the world economy collapsed.

Well, had the Brits & French lost in 1919, there would have been no Roaring 20s, instead the Great depression would have started in 1919.

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Never heard that theory before. Murray Rothbard, Garet Garrett, Amity Shlaes and Gene Smiley, who are critically acclaimed analysts of the Great Depression might not agree.

By the way, we did have a depression that started right after the war.

[BroJoeK]

Fiji Hill: "Never heard that theory before."

Preparata, "Conjuring Hitler"

This 2005 book is heavy-duty hi-proof conspiracy theories, not for the faint of heart, nor for the uninformed, and much of it can only be dismissed out of hand.
But it is highly sympathetic to Germans, and its economic analysis rings true to me.
The idea that German reparations helped Brits & French pay their war debts makes sense, as does the "coincidence" that when reparation were rescheduled in 1929 (the Young Plan), soon after the US stock market collapsed.

"Between agreement and adoption of the plan came the Wall Street Crash of 1929, of which the main consequences were twofold.
The American banking system had to recall money from Europe, and cancel the credits that made the Young Plan possible."

That's not to say, of course, it was the only cause of the Great Depression, certainly there were other factors.
But every crash takes a trigger, and this sounds like the one to me.

So I don't buy the conspiracies advanced by "Conjuring Hitler", but I do think the economic part is spot on.