Economic Nationalism vs. Free Trade | A Global History

History repeats itself, but with tariffs and trade wars, the stakes can be global. In this deep-dive documentary, we unravel the story of economic nationalism, tracing it from the era of mercantilism and colonial empires to the world-shattering protectionism of the 1930s. Discover how British Corn Laws fell, why Germany collapsed after Versailles, and what really triggered the infamous Smoot-Hawley Tariff that dragged the world deeper into the Great Depression. Then witness the rise of hope: the post-WWII vision of Roosevelt and Churchill, the birth of Bretton Woods, and the creation of GATT, a system meant to save the world from another round of self-destruction! But, as protectionist pressures return in our modern age, we are left to ask: Are we repeating the mistakes of the past?