John Maynard Keynes: The Economic Consequences of the Peace

"The Economic Consequences of the Peace" gave economist John Maynard Keynes a huge but controversial influence on perceptions of the peace treaty signed after World War I. John Maynard Keynes was not only a brilliant economist, but a superb writer with a keen eye for the foibles of the great men of his time. "The Economic Consequences of the Peace" is a must read for anyone interested in the Versailles Peace Treaty and the aftermath of its signing. Even today, the power of Keynes' argument is evident. Though Keynes admitted that the allies might not hold Germany to all the economic terms of the treaty, he still felt strongly that many of the terms of the treaty, whether enforced or not, discouraged sound planning by German investors, companies, and its government, and unnecessarily impoverished the German people. As pointed out in his classic book, Keynes felt this was bad for not just Germany, but all of Europe.