Great Depression

The Great Depression was a worldwide economic downturn in the 1930s.

The Depression resulted from the Wall Street Crash in the United States of America in October 1929, towards the start of Herbert Hoover's presidency. The stock market suffered its worst crash in history, paving the way for the Depression. It lasted roughly ten years, ending at the onset of the Second World War. (PROSE: A History of Humankind)

The Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones travelled to New York City during the Great Depression, witnessing the poverty it generated when they visited a Hooverville in Central Park. (TV: Daleks in Manhattan / Evolution of the Daleks)

The Crash and the Depression were felt in the United Kingdom, leading the 1930s to be remembered as a period of gloom. However, the British also enjoyed numerous positive aspects to counterbalance the bad. (PROSE: A History of Humankind)

By contrast, the Depression was devastating for Weimar Germany. With the economy still crippled by the First World War and reparations imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, (AUDIO: The Alchemists) the Depression launched the economic woes far beyond the ability of the German government to deal with. The anger, bitterness and resentment this generated helped Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party re-emerge as serious contenders on the political scene after the failure of the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. (PROSE: A History of Humankind) They eventually came to power, which the First Doctor and Susan Foreman believed could have been avoided if Germany had been in a more stable economic position. (AUDIO: The Alchemists)

Ruth began working as Harold Reitman's personal assistant during the Depression. (PROSE: Dying in the Sun)

The Depression came to an end in 1939, with the onset of the Second World War, although the Twelfth Doctor noted this was "hardly an improvement." (PROSE: A History of Humankind)

Legacy

In 1947, FOCAL, using propaganda films to influence children to follow the Way of Light, showed a film about a well-off woman who lost everything during the Depression, but soon learned how to be much happier without money. (PROSE: Dying in the Sun)

The aftermath of Miracle Day damaged the economy enough that it was likened to the Great Depression. (TV: The Gathering)