Round Table movementFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Round Table movement, founded in 1909, was an association of organizations promoting closer union

between Britain and its self-governing colonies. The movement began at a conference at Plas Newydd, Lord

Anglesey's estate in Wales, over the weekend of 4-6 September.[1] The framework of the organisation was

devised by Lionel Curtis, but the overall idea was due to Lord Milner. Former South Africa administrator Philip

Kerr became secretary to the organisation.[2]

Contents

1 Organization

2 Society of the Elect

3 Similar organizations

4 Current organisation and membership

4.1 International Advisory Board

5 References

6 External links

Organization

The groups are a collection of small discussion and lobbying groups in every major capital city of the world

coordinated by a headquarters in London. In 1910, The Round Table Journal: A Quarterly Review of the

Politics of the British Empire was founded by Lord Milner and members of Milner's Kindergarten (Lionel

Curtis, Philip Kerr and Geoffrey Dawson) to unify the political thinking of the groups internationally. Other

prominent non-Kindergarten members included F.S. Oliver, Professor Reginald Coupland, Leo Amery, Waldorf

Astor, and Lord Robert Cecil. After World War II the journal was renamed The Round Table Journal: A

Quarterly Review of British Commonwealth Affairs to reflect changing postwar realities.

By 1915 Round Table groups existed in seven countries, including Britain, South Africa, Canada, Australia,

New Zealand, India, and a rather loosely organized group in the United States (George Louis Beer, Walter

Lippmann, Frank Aydelotte, Whitney Shepardson, Thomas W. Lamont, Erwin D. Canham and others).

Society of the Elect

Historian Carroll Quigley claimed that the Round Table Groups were connected to a secret society, which South

African diamond baron Cecil Rhodes is believed to have set up with similar goals. Rhodes was believed by some

to have formed this secret society in his lifetime. This secret society is supposed to have been named the Society

of the Elect.[3]

Rhodes first formalised his idea with William T. Stead, editor of the Pall Mall Gazette, when he and Stead

agreed on the structure of the secret society. This proposed secret society had an elaborate hierarchical

structure, based on that of the Jesuits, which comprised: at the top, the position of "General of the Society"—a

position modelled on the General of the Jesuits—to be occupied by Rhodes, with Stead and Lord Rothschild as

his designated successors; an executive committee called the "Junta of Three", comprising Stead, Milner and

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Reginald Baliol Brett (Lord Esher); then a "Circle of Initiates", consisting of a number of notables including

Cardinal Manning, Lord Arthur Balfour, Lord Albert Grey and Sir Harry Johnston; and outside of this was the

"Association of Helpers", the broad mass of the Society. One of the puzzles surrounding this meeting is whether

the "Society of the Elect" actually came into being. Carroll Quigley claims in Tragedy and Hope (1966) that

Rhodes's "Society of the Elect" was not only "formally established" in 1891, although its first inception existed

some ten years prior (1881), but that its "outer circle" known as the "Association of Helpers" was "later

organised by Milner as the Round Table". [3]

In several of his wills, Rhodes left money for the continuation of the project. However in his later wills, Rhodes

abandoned the idea and instead concentrated on what became the Rhodes scholarships, which enabled

American, German and English scholars to study for free at Oxford University. [3]

Similar organizations

Lionel Curtis founded the Royal Institute of International Affairs in June 1920. A year later its sister

organisation, the Council on Foreign Relations, was formed in America. One of the founders of the sister

organisation was another member of the roundtable groups, Walter Lippmann. [3]

Current organisation and membership

The Round Table still exists but its position in influencing the policies of world leaders has been much reduced

from its heyday during the First World War. Today it is largely a Commonwealth ginger group, designed to

consider and influence Commonwealth policies. It also continues to run Round Table, a journal, and hold

dinners and conferences.

Informally, the Round Table is known as 'The Moot'.

A list of the Round Table membership is below:

Pal Ahluwalia

Amitav Banerji

Terry Barringer

Richard Bourne (Chairman)

Stephen Chan

Stephen Cox

Alexander Evans

Paul Flather

David French

Oren Gruenbaum

Amelia Hadfield

Meredith Hooper

Derek Ingram

David Jobbins

Alexandra Jones

Peter Lyon

Claire Martin

Sir Humphrey Maud

Alex May

James Mayall

Sir Michael McWilliam

Stuart Mole

Martin Mulligan

Alastair Niven

Mark Robinson

Prunella Scarlett

Victoria Schofield

Tim Shaw

Nicholas Sims

Tim Slack

Kayode Soyinka

Sir Robert Wade-Gery

Jennifer Welsh

Andrew J. Williams

International Advisory Board

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Godfrey Baldacchino

Sir Zelman Cowen

Gajaraj Dhanarajan

Sir Henry Forde

Brenda Gourley

Cedric Grant

Wang Gungwu

Norman Hillmer

Sir Kenneth Keith

Wm. Roger Louis

D. A. Low

Don Markwell

Ali A. Mazrui

Richard Nile

M. Ohta

Ato Quayson

Mizanur Rahman Shelley

Gowher Rizvi

L. K. Sharma

K. M. de Silva

Farooq Sobhan

Sir Roger Tomkys

Bernard Wood

Ngaire Woods

Isaac McAfferty

References

^ Historical Dictionary of the British Empire. 1996. ISBN 0313279179.1.

^ J. Lee Thompson (2007). Forgotten Patriot: A Life of Alfred, Viscount Milner of St. James's And Cape Town,

1854-1925. ISBN 0838641210.

2.

^ a b c d Quigley, Carroll : Tragedy & Hope: A History of the World in Our Time. G. S. G. & Associates,

Incorporated (june 1975). ISBN 094500110X, ISBN 978-0945001102

3.

External links

Will Banyan, "A short history of the round table", NEXUS Magazine, (Parts 1-4)

(http://www.nexusmagazine.com/articles/Rhodes&SecretSocieties.html)

The Round Table official web-site (http://www.moot.org.uk/)

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Round_Table_movement"

Categories: 1909 establishments | Commonwealth of Nations | British Empire

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