Here's What Membership in the Euro Did for Greece

Greece's third bailout agreement in five years was passed by the country's Parliament earlier this week, despite a national referendum that rejected new austerity measures. The resulting collapse of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' Syriza-led coalition and the protests that erupted in Athens showed that many in Greece are still asking themselves whether the ultimate prize — continued euro membership — is worth the pain of more austerity. History might have some answers.

Membership in the single currency was initially great for the Greeks. The size of their economy (on a per person basis) rose by 25 percent, and came very close to reaching the European Union average. Then Greeks watched in horror as the global recession and later their own debt crisis erased all those gains in just a few short years. By 2012, Greeks' per capita share of real GDP was the same as in 2001 and had fallen to 74 percent of the EU average.