The Future of International Law

The Future of International Law

1. He who would portray the future of international law must first of all be exact in his attitude towards its past and present. International law as the law of the international community of states, such as is the present-day conception of it, is of comparatively modern origin. Science dutifully traces it back to Hugo Grotius as its father. In his immortal work on the Law of War and of Peace he, with masterly touch, focalizes (as it were) all the tendencies which asserted themselves during the latter half of the middle ages into a law between independent states, in such sort that all subsequent development goes back to him. Undoubtedly the roots of this law reach back into the remotest past of civilization, for independent states, nay, independent tribes too, cannot have more or less frequent dealings with each other without developing definite forms therefor. And so the immunity which must everywhere be conceded to ambassadors and heralds will probably be the oldest root of international law. 2. But all attempts to find in the ancient world a law of the same kind as modern international law must inevitably come to grief on the fact that the idea of a community of law between civilized states was entirely foreign to antiquity, and only begins to make its gradual appearance in the last third of the middle ages. The Jewish ideal of perpetual peace and the union of all mankind under One God, foreseen in prophetic vision by Isaiah (ii. 2-4), may be taken as the first formulation of pacificist doctrine, which of course implies a community of law between all states, but the prophet does not apprehend this community of law as an independent idea. This idea was likewise unknown in its generality to Greek civilization, although certainly looming before it with some clearness in the international relations of the Greek city-states one to another. But even if we may speak of a law resembling in many respects modern international law as prevailing between the states of ancient Greece, this law must nevertheless be limited to Greek states, foreign states and peoples standing outside this community of law as barbarians. On the other hand, Roman law possessed, it is true, a mass of legal rules for the intercourse between the Roman Empire and all foreign states, but these rules were Roman law and not rules of an international law such as postulates an international community of law. 3. The idea of an international community of law could not have obtained acceptance before a time when there existed a number of completely independent states, internally akin in virtue of a community of intensive civilization and continually brought into contact with one another by a lively intercourse. It was in this way that an international community of law was begotten at the end of the middle ages out of Christian civilization and mutual intercourse. Grotius and his forerunners would not have been able to create international law, had not the conception of a community of law between Christian states enjoyed a general recognition, and had not international intercourse before their day evolved already a large number of rules of intercourse, which were based on custom and in part on very ancient usages. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 33302
Author: Oppenheim, L. (Lassa)
Release Date: Jul 31, 2010
Format: eBook
Language: English