Nature and History of International Law

By Manuel Careaga

  • Grotius

    Grotius
    Hugo de Root published De Jure Belli ac Pacis in 1625. He is considered the father of international law because he systematized international law and broke it down into its components parts.

  • Westphalia

    Westphalia
    After the Thirty Years War the peace of Westphalia was negotiated by two diplomatic congresses. And that resulted in the new political order based upon sovereign States.

  • Writings 18th Century

    Writings 18th Century
    Legal thinking shifted along with general political philosophy towards positivistic theories. The works of Emir Vattel and Immanuel Kant focused on State practice to the exclusion of natural law.

  • 18th and 19th centuries

    18th and 19th centuries
    The Congress of Vienna was intended to secure the long-term peace of Europe and establish regular meetings of European States, the benefits resulted in the use of multilateral Conventions and the creation of International Organizations. And in the 19th century these organizations gained immense power.

  • The League of Nations era

    The League of Nations era
    After WW1, the peace negotiatiors established the first global international organization with general competence, the failure of the League of Nations can be attributed to the decentralized security system written into the Covenant and the recalcitrance of it members.

  • The United Nations Era

    The United Nations Era
    The UN´s primary purpose is the maintenance of international peace and security, learning from mistakes they prohibited the use of threats of military force. The United Nations has been a major force in maintaining and restoring international peace and security and in developing international law.