| BOOK I. | ||
| Chapter | Page | |
| Introduction | [1] | |
| I. | On War and Right | [17] |
| II. | Inquiry into the Lawfulness of War | [31] |
| III. | The Division of War into Public and Private, and the Nature of Sovereign Power | [55] |
| BOOK II. | ||
| I. | Defense of Person and Property | [73] |
| II. | The General Rights of Things | [85] |
| III. | On the Original Acquisition of Things, and the Right of Property in Seas and Rivers | [103] |
| IV. | Title to Desert Lands by Occupancy, Possession, and Prescription | [109] |
| IX. | In What Cases Jurisdiction and Property Cease | [117] |
| X. | The Obligation Arising from Property | [123] |
| XI. | On Promises | [131] |
| XII. | On Contracts | [144] |
| XIII. | On Oaths | [160] |
| XV. | On Treaties and on Engagements Made by Delegates Exceeding Their Powers | [166] |
| XVI. | The Interpretation of Treaties | [176] |
| XVII. | On Damages Occasioned by Injury, and the Obligation to Repair Them | [195] |
| XVIII. | On the Rights of Embassies | [202] |
| XIX. | On the Right of Burial | [213] |
| XX. | On Punishments | [220] |
| XXI. | On the Communication of Punishment | [256] |
| XXII. | On the Unjust Causes of War | [267] |
| XXIII. | On Doubtful Causes | [274] |
| XXIV. | Precautions against Rashly Engaging in War, Even upon Just Grounds | [280] |
| BOOK III. | ||
| I. | What Is Lawful in War | [290] |
| II. | In What Manner the Law of Nations Renders the Property of Subjects Answerable for the Debts of Sovereigns. The Nature of Reprisals | [307] |
| III. | On Just or Solemn War According to the Law of Nations on Declarations of War | [314] |
| IV. | On the Right of Killing an Enemy in Lawful War and Committing Other Acts of Hostility | [323] |
| V. | On the Right to Lay Waste an Enemy's Country and Carry Off His Effects | [332] |
| VI. | On the Acquisition of Territory and Property by Right of Conquest | [334] |
| VII. | On the Right over Prisoners of War | [345] |
| VIII. | On Empire over the Conquered | [348] |
| IX. | Of the Right of Postliminium | [351] |
| XI. | The Right of Killing Enemies, in Just War, to be Tempered with Moderation and Humanity | [359] |
| XII. | On Moderation in Despoiling an Enemy's Country | [365] |
| XIII. | On Moderation in Making Captures in War | [369] |
| XV. | On Moderation in Acquiring Dominion | [372] |
| XVI. | On Moderation with Respect to Things Excluded from the Right of Postliminium by the Law of Nations | [375] |
| XVII. | Respecting Those Who Are Neutral in War | [377] |
| XIX. | On Good Faith between Enemies | [379] |
| XX. | On the Public Faith by Which War Is Concluded; Comprising Treaties of Peace, and the Nature of Arbitration, Surrender, Hostages, Pledges | [385] |
| XXI. | On Faith During the Continuance of War, on Truces, Safe-Conducts, and the Redemption of Prisoners | [403] |
| XXII. | On the Faith of Those Invested with Subordinate Powers in War | [411] |
| XXIV. | On Tacit Faith | [415] |
| XXV. | Conclusion | [417] |
| INDEX | [419] | |
[INTRODUCTION]
The Work and Influence of Hugo Grotius.
The claims of the great work of Grotius, "De Jure Belli ac Pacis," to be included in a list of Universal Classics, do not rest upon the felicity of style usually expected in a classic composition. His work is marked by frequent rhetorical deformities, tedious and involved forms of reasoning, and perplexing obscurities of phraseology which prevent its acceptance as an example of elegant writing. Notwithstanding these external defects, it is, nevertheless, one of the few notable works of genius which, among the labors of centuries, stand forth as illustrations of human progress and constitute the precious heritage of the human race.
If it is not literature in the technical sense, the masterpiece of Grotius is something higher and nobler,—a triumph of intelligence over irrational impulses and barbarous propensities. Its publication marks an era in the history of nations, for out of the chaos of lawless and unreasoning strife it created a system of illuminating principles to light the way of sovereigns and peoples in the paths of peace and general concord.
I. The Reign of War.
The idea of peaceful equity among nations, now accepted as a human ideal, though still far from realization, was for ages a difficult, if not an impossible, conception. All experience spoke against it, for war was the most familiar phenomenon of history.
Among the Greek city-states, a few temporary leagues and federations were attempted, but so feeble were the bonds of peace, so explosive were the passions which led to war, that even among the highly civilized Hellenic peoples, community of race, language, and religion was powerless to create a Greek nation. It was reserved for the military genius of Alexander the Great, at last, by irresistible conquest, to bring the Greek Empire into being, to be destroyed in turn by superior force.
The Roman Empire almost achieved the complete political unity of Europe, and bound parts of three continents under one rule, but the corruption of the military power which held it together led to its inevitable dismemberment.