Keynes the Man.pdf - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

Murray N. Rothbard 13The Cambridge ApostleTHE MOST favored education available to the Englishelite was secured for Maynard by his doting father. First,he was a scholarship student at “College” in Eton, theintellectual subdivision of England’s most influentialpublic school. From there, Maynard went on to King’s College,which, along with Trinity, was one of the two dominant collegesat Cambridge University.At King’s, Maynard was soon tapped for coveted membershipin the secret society of the Apostles, an organization that rapidlyshaped his values and his life. Keynes grew to social and intellectualmaturity within the confines of this small, incestuous worldof secrecy and superiority. The Apostles were not simply a socialclub, in the manner of Ivy League secret fraternities. They werealso a self-consciously intellectual elite, especially interested inphilosophy and its applications to aesthetics and life.Apostle members were chosen almost exclusively from King’sand Trinity, and they met every Saturday evening behind lockeddoors to deliver and discuss papers. 1 During the rest of the week,members virtually lived in each others’ rooms. Moreover, Apostleshipwas not simply an undergraduate affair; it was membershipfor life and cherished as such. For the rest of their lives, adult Apostles(known as “Angels”), including Keynes, would often return to1Asking himself why the eminent constitutional historian Frederic W. Maitland had noinfluence over the Apostles in this era, even though a member, Derek Crabtree answersthat Maitland was unfortunate enough to hold his chair at Downing College, one of thelesser, uninfluential colleges at Cambridge (see Crabtree 1980, pp. 18–19).13