The Perfect Storm – Madeira Island and the Stock Market Crash of 1929 as seen by the Madeiran Press

Abstract

This article analyses the news in the Madeiran press – O Jornal, Diário de Notícias and Diário da Madeira –, between 1929 and 1930, about the crash of the New York Stock Exchange and its consequences for Madeira Island. Although these newspapers showed signs of being aware of the global crisis, they didn’t fully realise its magnitude and the impact it would have on the local economy. The text explores how the crisis affected different sectors on the island and highlights the central government’s lack of support. The analysis also looks at the Madeiran banking crisis and the influence of António de Oliveira Salazar, who, while trying to stabilize portuguese finances, let Madeiran banks succumb to the crisis. The text concludes with a critical look at how Madeiran elites, although informed, failed to foresee and avoid the consequences of the perfect storm that hit the island, whilst reveling how the crisis exposed historical vulnerabilities and drove a political and social reconfiguration on the island.

Keywords: Madeira Island; Economy; New York Stock Exchange Crash (1929); Madeiran Press; Banks; Industry; Crisis.