Introduction: The Roman Foundations of the Law of Nations

THE ROMAN FOUNDATIONS OF THE LAW OF NATIONS: ALBERICO GENTILI AND THE JUSTICE OF EMPIRE, B. Kingsbury & B. Straumann, eds., Oxford University Press, 2010

NYU School of Law, Public Law Research Paper No. 11-06

19 Pages Posted: 1 Feb 2011

See all articles by Benedict Kingsbury

Benedict Kingsbury

New York University School of Law

Benjamin Straumann

New York University School of Law

Date Written: December 1, 2010

Abstract

Where did the writers of the sixteenth, seventeenth, and early eighteenth centuries seek the legal maxims and methods, the principles governing treaties or embassies or jurisdiction or property, and the broader ideas of justice in the inception, fighting, and conclusion of war, which they built into a law of nations of enduring importance? To a considerable extent, they looked to Roman law, Roman debates about the justifications of Rome’s wars and imperial expansion, and a rich tradition of ius naturae and ius gentium deriving from Greco-Roman and early Christian sources. This book brings together a set of fresh perspectives exploring the significance and implications of the use made of Roman legal concepts, and of Roman just war theory and imperial practice, by early modern European writers who shaped lasting approaches to natural law and the law of nations.

Suggested Citation

Kingsbury, Benedict and Straumann, Benjamin, Introduction: The Roman Foundations of the Law of Nations (December 1, 2010). THE ROMAN FOUNDATIONS OF THE LAW OF NATIONS: ALBERICO GENTILI AND THE JUSTICE OF EMPIRE, B. Kingsbury & B. Straumann, eds., Oxford University Press, 2010, NYU School of Law, Public Law Research Paper No. 11-06, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1753043

Benedict Kingsbury (Contact Author)

New York University School of Law ( email )

40 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012-1099
United States
212-998-6278 (Phone)

Benjamin Straumann

New York University School of Law ( email )

D'Agostino Hall 212
110 West Third Street
New York, NY 10012
United States
917-684-9185 (Phone)
212-995-4538 (Fax)

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