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company, and overextended his bank. As this liability became public,
investors began withdrawing money from Cooke & Company.
The Panic of 1873 surrounded a severe international economic
depression in both Europe and the United States that lasted until
1879, and even longer in some countries. It is nowadays referred to
as the Depression of 1873, by historians. It was triggered by the fall
in demand for silver internationally, which followed Germany's
decision to abandon the silver
standard in the wake of the
Franco-Prussian war. In 1871
German Statesman Bismarck
extracted a large indemnity in
gold from France and ceased
minting silver thaler coins.
The first symptoms of the
crisis were financial failures in
the Austro-Hungarian capital,
Vienna, which spread to most
of Europe and North America
by 1873. It was one of a
series of economic crises in
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