The Economic Consequences of the Peace.

London: Macmillan and Co., Limited,, 1919. Keynes as prophet First edition, first impression, of Keynes's second book, which established his reputation as a political economist; with "presentation copy" blindstamp to title page. Keynes's biographer called the book "one of the most influential books of the twentieth century" (Skidelsky, p. 384). Keynes resigned from his position as principal representative of the British Treasury at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, in protest of the heavy reparations demanded from Germany. The Economic Consequences of the Peace was written directly afterwards as a condemnation of Allied policy: Keynes would continue arguing against the reparations in his 1922 book, A Revision of the Treaty. "The violence of the controversy aroused by these two books [Economic Consequences and Revision of the Treaty] is now difficult to appreciate. Even while they were being written many of his prophecies came true and, in the light of the subsequent history, the foresight of his conclusions would be uncanny did they not proceed so inevitably from his premises" (PMM). Keynes's view, that the Treaty of Versailles was fundamentally unjust and threatened the peace and security of Europe, remains widely shared to this day. Octavo. Original blue cloth, spine lettered in gilt. Spine dulled and worn at ends, endpapers and half-title toned, contents clean with a few page corners turned over. A good copy. Fundaburk 9981; Mattioli 1807; Moggridge A 2.1.1. Robert Skidelsky, John Maynard Keynes: Hopes Betrayed, 1983.