The period between 1918 and 1939 is known to have been a time of economic struggle for Scotland. Victory in World War I was followed by a great postwar economic depression. With the growth of economic nationalism, Britain had abandoned its previous free trade. A further depression in 1929 dealt another blow to the Scottish economy, accompanied. Yet there are a number of key factors that have contributed to the collapse of Scotland's economy. Steel production and shipbuilding certainly saw effects after the war ended. The colossal drop in demand for further production has resulted in a gradual decline in contracts and profits that has proved crippling for some businesses. In 1920, 2 million tons of steel were produced followed by 672,000 tons dropped on the Clyde. However, in 1931, only 670,000 tons of steel were produced and a tonnage of 67,000 was launched. This has seen shipbuilders such as Brown's see profits of up to 0.4% on contracts.[1] This went hand in hand with unemployment. Many chose emigration as an option to escape unemployment and between 1921 and 1931 Scotland lost large numbers of people who left in search of opportunities elsewhere. As businesses and factories began to struggle in Scotland, employment problems began to grow, ending in a series of protest marches in cities such as Glasgow and Edinburgh. The effects of the difficulty of Scottish agriculture have also had an effect on the economy. Cattle ranching dominated the rural workforce, accompanied by a decline of approximately 20,000 agricultural workers. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay During the war, Scotland had relied heavily on heavy industries such as shipbuilding. The naval arms race had led to a great increase in demand that would create thousands of jobs and stimulate new means of production. After the end of the war in 1918, however, these heavy industries saw a collapse in demand which proved crucial to the Scottish economy. The real problem in steel and iron production stemmed from Scotland's position before the war. It was clear, when examining Scotland's steel production in the lead up to the war, that the country's means of production would be insufficient. This meant that there was a huge push to impose more on heavy industries, which would create a massive increase in proportions compared to other countries. This meant that Scotland's enormous success during the war would contribute to its heavy fall during the post-war world depression. In terms of iron, the focus on production remained in a pre-war mindset, seeing a huge amount of neglect in the production of basic pig iron. Scotland was focusing on a manufacturing structure that had worked beautifully previously and would last in the short term. However, the tendency to focus on traditional sectors such as hematite, smelting and iron forging meant that there was now an emphasis on manufacturing in areas that had the least demand globally. Although there was a decline in the production of products such as hematite, there was still a much higher proportion of this type of iron production than in the rest of the UK. Hematite made up around 44% of all Scotland's iron production, while forging and foundry iron accounted for another 35%.[2] There was also a wholly inadequate reserve of iron orenational, which further limited the possibility of continuous production of cast iron. The production of these steel-heavy components obviously revolved around shipbuilding. However, shipbuilding was an industry that had to base its production on global demand. The end of the war saw the start of huge inconsistencies in the demand for ships to be built, with sudden increases in short periods of time followed by critical crises. There has also been less demand from Britain itself. During the interwar period the percentage of the country's trade would be carried out by mercantile shipping declined. There was also the question of progressive shipbuilding techniques. By 1934, the general hold capacity of Scottish-built ships had increased by 50% compared to that in 1914.[3] These kinds of improvements in shipbuilding have essentially seen the industry shoot itself in the foot. As ships became more powerful and capable of carrying larger cargoes, there was a sharp decline in their need for numbers. There was also a sense of international sabotage looking at the decline of Scottish shipbuilding. Britain as a whole had earned a reputation as a leader in ship production during the war. Germany, followed by Japan and Italy, began an apparently deliberate policy to damage the British shipbuilding industry, attempting to cut Britain off from the already established trade. During the 1930s, claims held in Germany by foreign shipping interests could only be collected if ships were ordered exclusively from German yards. As a result, millions of pounds of ship orders that could have been placed through British contracts were lost to Germany. There was a clear sense of underlying bitter relations as Germany attempted to regain balance after defeat. Shipbuilding was so important to the Scottish economy because of its sense of locality. Historians such as Neil Buxton have described his products as “incorporating and providing the market outlet for the production of numerous other crafts”[4]. Every item needed to assemble a ship came from its own industrial area. Transportation costs meant that much of this was purchased locally. So when the main source of demand came under fire, so did each of its counterparts. This is where Scotland's huge dependence on heavy industry becomes apparent. There was such a focus on wartime production that there would be clear consequences when demand began to decline. To fully understand the problems the Scottish economy faced in the period from 1918 to 1939, it is important to analyze the causes and consequences of unemployment. . Scotland's first commissioner Sir Arthur Rose wrote in 1934: "I have considered industrial development to be the only real cure for unemployment".[5] Scotland's dependence on heavy industry meant that there were a large amount of jobs around these factories. With the previous demand and a large percentage of the population fighting on the Western Front, there were more than enough jobs for everyone. However, upon returning from the war, many men returned home to realize that they were not returning to any form of work paradise. Heavy industrial factories lost jobs due to a lack of financial success but also due to the technological boost that the war had brought with it. The introduction of automatic machinery and assembly lines meant that there was now less need for labour. Another example of wartime success thatleads to post-war depression. This caused pressure from the government to fill these employment gaps which would prove costly. Programs have been established to improve public amenity, for example through road improvements and slum clearance. There was also the idea of ​​reclaiming the land to create jobs, but this idea was not very successful. In 1929 there was only one such project ready for operation. It would cost £7000 sterling and employ 30 men over a period of 9 months. Other larger plans were proposed to increase numbers by 300-400 men, at a cost of £151,000, but were never implemented.[6] The goal of improving employment has been slow and has not met demand. Marches took place in protest in cities such as Edinburgh and Glasgow as people grew tired of the desperate lack of work. Of course, the decline in employment has led to long-term setbacks for the Scottish economy. Times of difficulty have prevented the country from reviving its economy from within. Depressed areas that relied on industry simply had no money to spend. Because of this there was a huge increase in Scottish emigration. Many chose to look elsewhere for job opportunities that could no longer exist provided at home. There was little to no action that could be taken to address these issues. The whole world was feeling the costly effects of large-scale war and Scotland was no different. It was only with the revival of industries around the Second World War that employment really had the opportunity to recover. Unemployment problems have caused a slippery slope for the Scottish economy. The lack of national income was a blow in itself, but the increase in the number of people affected only made things worse. This industrial decline went hand in hand with setbacks in Scottish agriculture; there was no escape from economic failure, even in rural areas. Agricultural effects were present, but not as dramatic compared to those of industry. After 1921 Scottish farmers faced the same general price depression as everyone else. Farmers reacted in the same way as before the war boom. Shift from arable crops to extended rotations and more convenient permanent pastures. However farmers' returns were still made. Prices began to fluctuate wildly for items such as potatoes and oats, rising and falling in their continuing downward trend. Inconsistencies in harvests meant that there was an increase in activities such as sheep farming as livestock appeared more profitable. The post-war depression saw a revival of land settlement programs as the government attempted to support them with the likes of corn production. The government had no intention of providing long-term aid to eliminate food price controls, however, farmers were among the major contributors. The war had created some progress with agricultural workers' unions aiming to address wage problems. Although there was no dramatic wage decline for these workers at the end of the war, wage declines accelerated during the 1930s. There was a decline from 26 to 23 shillings in weekly agricultural wages between 1933 and 1937.[7] Employment was also a growing problem. Like heavy industry, technological progress had dealt a severe blow to employment. New and more frequent advances such as tractors and plows had filled a number of gaps in the employment of many skilled agricultural workers. The difficult years.