In 1873, Ohio senator John Sherman quietly helped pass a law that stopped Americans from turning silver into official US money. The consequences were huge: years of economic pain and political turmoil that earned it the nickname “the Crime of 1873”. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Liaquat Ahamed explains how the event squeezed American farmers and fuelled the Free Silver movement, led by the populist firebrand William Jennings Bryan. Host Gillian Tett explores with Ahamed how monetary policy can reshape politics.

Further reading:

1873: The Rothschilds, the First Great Depression, and the Making of the Modern World (2026), by Liaquat Ahamed

Credits: Getty Images, Wikimedia, Alamy

Note: The “Cross of Gold” clip is from a 1921 studio recording, read by William Jennings Bryan.

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Hosts: Gillian Tett and Robin Wigglesworth

Senior Producers: Michela Tindera and Laurence Knight

Executive producer: Manuela Saragosa

Original music and sound design: Breen Turner

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Video editor: Richard Topping

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