Abraham Lincoln’s financial policies during the Civil War are highlighted for challenging central banking practices and European financial influence. Despite economic instability caused by fractional reserve banking, the U.S. grew rapidly, threatening European financial dominance.

The documentary suggests the Civil War’s causes included economic factors like tariffs and European conspiracies to divide the U.S. to maintain control. Lincoln, rejecting high-interest loans from bankers, issued government-backed “greenbacks” to fund the war debt-free, alarming international bankers who feared losing their power. This action framed Lincoln as a defender of American sovereignty against entrenched financial interests.

View the video and its summary at “17. Abe Lincoln”
and then discuss it below.