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Chapter companions for The Economic Consequences of the Peace by John Maynard Keynes.

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  1. Chapter 1

    The Economic Consequences of the Peace

    This chapter examines the severe economic repercussions of the Treaty of Versailles, arguing that the punitive reparations and territorial losses imposed on Germany will destabilize Europe's entire economic system, leading to widespread suffering and potential collapse.

  2. Chapter 2

    I: Introductory

    Keynes introduces the theme of Europe's fragile and temporary economic organization, shattered by war and threatened further by the punitive terms of the Peace of Paris. He contrasts the obliviousness of England and America with the desperate reality on the continent, and describes the nightmarish atmosphere of the Paris Peace Conference, where decisions seemed both momentous and futile.

  3. Chapter 3

    Europe Before the War

    Keynes describes the pre-war European economic system, highlighting its dependence on capital accumulation, population growth, and food imports from the New World. He identifies structural instabilities—excessive population, psychological tensions among classes, and precarious food supplies—that the war shattered, setting the stage for the peace conference's failures.

  4. Chapter 4

    Population

    This chapter examines the dramatic population growth in Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia before World War I, and how this demographic explosion necessitated an industrial transformation and economic interdependence that made Central Europe vulnerable to collapse when the war disrupted the delicate balance.

  5. Chapter 5

    Organization

    This chapter describes the intricate economic organization of pre-war Europe, centered on Germany's industrial dominance and the interdependence of European nations through trade, currency stability, and capital flows. It highlights how Germany's growth supported its neighbors and how internal factors like minimal tariffs and secure property rights enabled this system, while also noting the reliance on external factors common to all of Europe.

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  1. Chapter 6III: The Psychology of Society
  2. Chapter 7IV: The Relation of the Old World to the New
  3. Chapter 8III: The Conference
  4. Chapter 9IV: The Treaty
  5. Chapter 10V: Reparation
  6. Chapter 11Undertakings Given Prior to the Peace Negotiations
  7. Chapter 12The Conference and the Terms of the Treaty
  8. Chapter 13Germany's Capacity to Pay
  9. Chapter 14The Reparation Commission
  10. Chapter 15V: The German Counterproposals
  11. Chapter 16VI: Europe After the Treaty
  12. Chapter 17VII: Remedies
  13. Chapter 18Endnotes