Thomas Tooke on the Bullionist controversies

This paper examines the position of Thomas Tooke (1774-1858) on the issues at the centre of the Bullionist controversies, which occurred during the restriction of cash payments by the Bank of England in the period 1797-1821. It shows that Tooke was a strong supporter of resumption and the gold standard, but that from the beginning, his monetary thought significantly differed from that of the Bullionists. The paper shows that Tooke's explanation of price inflation and the depreciation of the paper currency as well as his assessment of the Bank of England largely supported the position of the anti-Bullionists against the Bullionists.