MARTENS, FRÉDÉRIC FROMMHOLD DE (1845-1909), Russian jurist, was born at Pernau in Livonia. In 1868 he entered the Russian ministry of foreign affairs, was admitted in 1871 as a Dozent in international law in the university of St Petersburg, and in 1871 became lecturer and then (1872) professor of public law in the Imperial School of Law and the Imperial Alexander Lyceum. In 1874 when Prince Gorchakov, then imperial chancellor, needed assistance for certain kinds of special work, Martens was chosen to afford it. His book on The Right of Private Property in War had appeared in 1869, and had been followed in 1873 by that upon The Office of Consul and Consular Jurisdiction in the East, which had been translated into German and republished at Berlin. These were the first of a long series of studies which won for their author a world-wide reputation, and raised the character of the Russian school of international jurisprudence in all civilized countries. First amongst them must be placed the great Recueil des traités et conventions conclus par la Russie avec les puissances étrangères (13 vols., 1874-1902). This collection, published in Russian and French in parallel columns, contains not only the texts of the treaties but valuable introductions dealing with the diplomatic conditions of which the treaties were the outcome. These introductions are based largely on unpublished documents from the Russian archives. Of Martens’ original works his International Law of Civilized Nations is perhaps the best known; it was written in Russian, a German edition appearing in 1884-1885, and a French edition in 1887-1888. It displays much judgment and acumen, though some of the doctrines which it defends by no means command universal assent. More openly “tendencious” in character are such treatises as Russia and England in Central Asia (1879); Russia’s Conflict with China (1881), The Egyptian Question (1882), and The African Conference of Berlin and the Colonial Policy of Modern States (1887). In the delicate questions raised in some of these works Martens stated his case with learning and ability, even when it was obvious that he was arguing as a special pleader. Martens was repeatedly chosen to act in international arbitrations. Among the controversies which he helped to adjust were that between Mexico and the United States—the first case determined by the permanent tribunal of The Hague—and the difference between Great Britain and France in regard to Newfoundland in 1891. He played an important part in the negotiations between his own country and Japan, which led to the peace of Portsmouth (Aug. 1905) and prepared the way for the Russo-Japanese convention. He was employed in laying the foundations for The Hague Conferences. He was one of the Russian plenipotentiaries at the first conference and president of the fourth committee—that on maritime law—at the second conference. His visits to the chief capitals of Europe in the early part of 1907 were an important preliminary in the preparation of the programme. He was judge of the Russian supreme prize court established to determine cases arising during the war with Japan. He received honorary degrees from the universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Yale; he was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1902. In April 1907 he addressed a remarkable letter to The Times on the position of the second Duma, in which he argued that the best remedy for the ills of Russia would be the dissolution of that assembly and the election of another on a narrower franchise. He died suddenly on the 20th of June 1909.
See T. E. Holland, in Journal of the Society of Comparative Legislation for October 1909, where a list of the writings of Martens appears.
MARTENS, GEORG FRIEDRICH VON (1756-1821), German jurist and diplomatist, was born at Hamburg on the 22nd of February 1756. Educated at the universities of Göttingen, Regensburg and Vienna, he became professor of jurisprudence at Göttingen in 1783 and was ennobled in 1789. He was made a counsellor of state by the elector of Hanover in 1808, and in 1810 was president of the financial section of the council of state of the kingdom of Westphalia. In 1814 he was appointed privy cabinet-councillor (Geheimer Kabinetsrat) by the king of Hanover, and in 1816 went as representative of the king to the diet of the new German Confederation at Frankfort, where he died on the 21st of February 1821.
Of his works the most important is the great collection of treaties Recueil des traités, &c. from 1761 onwards. Of this the first seven volumes were published at Göttingen (1791-1801), followed by four supplementary volumes partly edited by his nephew Karl von Martens (see below). These were followed by Nouveau recueil, of treaties subsequent to 1808, in 16 vols. (Göttingen, 1817-1842), of which G. F. von Martens edited the first four, the fifth being the work of K. von Martens, the others (6-9) by F. Saalfeld and (10-16) F. Murhard. A Nouveau supplément, in 3 vols., filling gaps in the previous collection, was also published by Murhard (Göttingen, 1839-1842). This was followed by Nouveau recueil ... continuation du grand recueil de Martens, in 20 vols. (Göttingen, 1843-1875), edited in turn by F. Murhard, C. Murhard, J. Pinhas, C. Samwer and J. Hopf, with a general index of treaties from 1494 to 1874 (1876). This was followed by Nouveau recueil, 2me série (Göttingen, 1876-1896; vols. xxii.-xxxv., Leipzig, 1897-1908). From vol. xi. on this series was edited by Felix Stork, professor of public law at Greifswald. In 1909 appeared vol. i. of a further Continuation (troisième série) under the editorship of Professor Heinrich Triepel of Kiel University.
Of Martens’ other works the most important are the Précis du droit des gens modernes de l’Europe (1789; 3rd ed., Göttingen, 1821; new ed., G. S. Pinheiro-Ferreira, 2 vols., 1858, 1864); Erzählungen merkwürdiger Fälle des neueren europäischen Völkerrechts, 2 vols. (Göttingen, 1800-1802); Cours diplomatique ou tableau des relations des puissances de l’Europe, 3 vols. (Berlin, 1801); Grundriss einer diplomatischen Gesch. der europ. Staatshändel u. Friedensschlüsse seit dem Ende des 15. Jahrhunderts (ibid. 1807).
His nephew Karl von Martens (1790-1863), who at his death was minister resident of the grand-duke of Weimar at Dresden, published a Manuel diplomatique (Leipzig, 1823), re-issued as Guide diplomatique in two vols. in 1832 (5th ed. by Geffcken, 1866), a valuable textbook of the rules and customs of the diplomatic service; Causes célèbres du droit des gens (2 vols., ibid., 1827) and Nouvelles causes célèbres (2 vols., ibid., 1843), both republished, in 5 vols. (1858-1861); Recueil manuel et pratique de traités (7 vols., ibid., 1846-1857); continued by Geffcken in 3 vols., (1885-1888).
MARTENSEN, HANS LASSEN (1808-1884), Danish divine, was born at Flensburg on the 19th of August 1808. He studied in Copenhagen, and was ordained in the Danish Church. At Copenhagen he was lektor in theology in 1838, professor extra-ordinarius in 1840, court preacher also in 1845, and professor ordinarius in 1850. In 1854 he was made bishop of Seeland. In his studies he had come under the influence of Schleiermacher, Hegel and Franz Baader; but he was a man of independent mind, and developed a peculiar speculative theology which showed a disposition towards mysticism and theosophy. His contributions to theological literature included treatises on Christian ethics and dogmatics, on moral philosophy, on baptism, and a sketch of the life of Jakob Boehme, who exercised so marked an influence on the mind of the great English theologian of the 18th century, William Law. Martensen was a distinguished preacher, and his works were translated into various languages. The “official” eulogy he pronounced upon Bishop Jakob P. Mynster (1775-1854) in 1854, brought down upon his head the invectives of the philosopher Sören Kierkegaard. He died at Copenhagen on the 3rd of February 1884.
Amongst his works are: Grundriss des Systems der Moralphilosophie (1841; 3rd ed., 1879; German, 1845), Die christl. Taufe und die baptistische Frage (2nd ed., 1847; German, 2nd ed., 1860), Den Christelige Dogmatik (4th ed., 1883; Eng. trans., 1866; German by himself, 4th ed., 1897); Christliche Ethik (1871; Eng. trans., Part I. 1873, Part II. 1881 seq.); Hirtenspiegel (1870-1872); Katholizismus und Protestantismus (1874); Jacob Böhme (1882; Eng. trans., 1885). An autobiography, Aus meinem Leben, appeared in 1883, and after his death the Briefwechsel zwischen Martensen und Dorner (1888).