Charles Gates Dawes Banker, statesman, Vice President of the United States. Winner of the 1926 Nobel Peace Prize together with Austin Chamberlain for the Dawes Plan Date of Birth: 27.08.1865 Country: USA

Biography of Charles Gates Dawes

Charles Gates Dawes, a banker, statesman, and Vice President of the United States, was born on August 27, 1865, in Marietta, Ohio. He came from a family of entrepreneurs, with his father, Rufus R. Dawes, gaining recognition as a brigadier general during the American Civil War and serving in Congress.

Dawes completed his education in Marietta, graduating from both high school and college. In 1886, he earned a Bachelor's degree from the University of Cincinnati Law School and later returned to Marietta to pursue a Master's degree. At the age of 19, he ventured to the rapidly developing city of Lincoln, Nebraska, combining his legal practice with establishing business connections for the future.

Over the course of seven years, Dawes earned a reputation as an intelligent, innovative, persistent, and cautious businessman. He controlled several office buildings, a meatpacking company, served as a bank director, and invested in real estate and banking stocks. However, the banking panic of 1893 in the United States resulted in significant losses for Dawes. As a result, he moved to Chicago in 1894 and acquired a controlling stake in gas manufacturing plants in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and north of Chicago. Through these investments in the energy sector, he and his brothers gained control over 29% of gas and electric stations in ten states.

In 1902, Dawes handed over management of the utility services to his brothers and transitioned to the banking sector. He founded and became president of the Central Trust Company of Illinois, often referred to as the "Dawes Bank." It became one of the largest banks in the Midwest, and Dawes led it until 1917. Alongside his business ventures, he held various government positions and even attempted a career in politics. He participated in the 1896 Illinois campaign for Republican presidential candidate William McKinley, organizing fundraising for his campaign. After McKinley's election, Dawes was appointed Comptroller of the Currency, where he took measures to strengthen the country's banking system, which had been shaken by the 1893 crisis.

In 1917, when the United States entered World War I, Dawes volunteered for service in the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe. General Pershing enlisted him in the Army Supply Corps, where he was responsible for army supply and food distribution. Starting as a major, he ended the war as a brigadier general and oversaw supply for all Allied forces. He returned to the United States in 1919, advocating for the country's membership in the League of Nations, despite the Republican Party's official isolationist position.

In 1920, Dawes declined an offer to become Secretary of the Treasury but accepted the position of the first Director of the Bureau of the Budget. In this role, he reformed and improved the efficiency of the government's budget execution. Each government department had to provide clear plans for future budget expenses, which were then strictly followed. It is estimated that his reforms saved the United States around two billion dollars within the first year of his directorship.

In late 1923, Dawes was invited by the League of Nations to lead a committee of experts in the Allied Reparations Commission. The problem was that the post-war economy of Germany, like much of Europe, was devastated. In order to pay the imposed reparations, Germany needed to restore economic stability. However, the prospect of a strong Germany worried its neighbors, particularly the French and Belgians, who feared the revival of German militarism. The committee presented a report known as the "Dawes Plan," which proposed the evacuation of Allied troops from the strategically important and coal-rich Ruhr Valley, a sliding scale of reparation payments, and the reorganization of the German Reichsbank under Allied control. Excise and transportation taxes and customs duties were to become sources for reparation payments. After the plan was accepted in September 1924, German monetary circulation and credit were restored. In recognition of his diplomatic and economic skills, Dawes was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1925, which he donated to the School of Advanced International Studies at the Johns Hopkins University.

In 1924, the Republican National Convention nominated Dawes as the candidate for Vice President of the United States in Calvin Coolidge's electoral campaign. He served in that role from 1925 to 1929. In 1929, when the Dominican Republic requested assistance in improving its government's financial operations, Dawes led a special commission that provided detailed recommendations, which were accepted by the country. From 1929 to 1932, he served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom. Following President Herbert Hoover's proposal, Dawes headed the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, a government agency created to stimulate economic activity in America through loans to banks, railroads, and other enterprises to save the national economy during the Great Depression.

Dawes was an extraordinarily industrious individual and remained active in commerce and politics until his 67th birthday. He authored nine books, held numerous public positions, and played the flute and piano. He even composed a melody, which renowned cellist Fritz Kreisler often performed as an encore. His business acumen and love for music led to the opening of the Chicago Civic Opera House. Despite the diversity of his interests, he always made time for his family and loved ones. Contemporary observers referred to him as "Hell and Maria" due to his straightforwardness during a memorable congressional hearing. When a member of the committee investigating wartime abuses asked if it was true that troops in France were paid too much for mules, Dawes passionately responded, "Hell and Maria, I would have paid for a sheep as much as for a horse if the sheep could pull a howitzer! We were fighting an enemy and didn't have time to deal with accounting copies."

Notable works written by Dawes include "Essays and Speeches" (1915), "The First Year of the Budget of the United States" (1923), "Notes as Vice President, 1928-1929" (1935), "A Journal of Reparations" (1939), "Journal as Ambassador to Great Britain" (1939), and "A Journal of the McKinley Years" (1950).