Hjalmar Schacht

Hjalmar Schacht was a German banker and politician who led the Reichsbank and served as economics minister under Adolf Hitler. He helped finance Germany’s recovery and early rearmament before falling out with the Nazi regime.

Adolf Hitler: Adolf Hitler was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until 1945. Hitler appointed Schacht to economic leadership and later rejected his opposition to unchecked rearmament.
Mefo bills: Mefo bills were promissory notes used by Nazi Germany to finance rearmament while delaying payments and concealing military spending. Schacht designed their use to fund arms purchases outside ordinary budget reporting.
Hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic: Hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic was the rapid collapse of the German mark’s value, reaching its peak in 1923. The crisis made currency stabilization urgent when Schacht became currency commissioner.
German rearmament: German rearmament was the expansion of Germany’s armed forces and weapons production, especially under the Nazi regime. Schacht’s financial measures enabled substantial early expansion of arms production.
Hermann Göring: Hermann Göring was a leading Nazi official who directed Germany’s Four Year Plan. Göring’s growing control over economic policy displaced Schacht’s influence.
Reichsbank: The Reichsbank was Germany’s central bank from 1876 until its replacement by the Bundesbank in 1957. Schacht used its authority to manage currency, credit, and the financing of rearmament.
Rentenmark: The Rentenmark was a temporary German currency introduced in 1923 to halt hyperinflation. Schacht helped establish the currency as Germany’s commissioner for monetary affairs.
Nuremberg trials: The Nuremberg trials were proceedings held by the Allied powers to prosecute leading Nazi officials after World War II. Schacht was tried for his role in the Nazi state and acquitted in 1946.
Walther Funk: Walther Funk was a Nazi economic official who succeeded Schacht as economics minister and Reichsbank president. Funk took over both offices after Schacht’s removal from economic leadership.
New Plan: The New Plan was Germany’s 1934 system of foreign-trade controls designed to conserve foreign currency and secure imports. Schacht introduced it as economics minister to direct scarce foreign exchange toward strategic imports.

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