GROTIUS, Hugo. De iure belli ac pacis libri tres, cum annotationibus selectis Ioann. Frid. Gronovii, & auctoribus Ioannes Barbeyracii. Accedit H. Grotii dissertation de mari libero; et libellus singularis de aequitate, indulgentia, & facilitate. Edidit atqua praefatus est Meinardy Tydeman. Utrecht: Jan Schonhooven. 1773.
Large 8vo. Contemporary full vellum, ornamented in gilt, spine lettered by hand in ink at the time, pp. xlii, [3], xxxvii, 1043, 43, [33], engraved portrait, additional engraved title-page, occasional Greek printing; binding with light bumps to upper corners, minimally rubbed, ties removed, apart from very occasional light spotting to text a very clean and attractively bound copy.
First published in 1625, this is a finely produced edition of Grotius' The Law of War is a milestone in the history of international and conflict law, 'the foundation of modern international law' (PMM). 'In this work, Grotius lays out his doctrine of natural law as the basis for the justifiable war. For a long period, De Iure Belli ac Pacis was granted such high significance that its author was regarded as the 'father of international law'. The work aroused much interest at the very beginning of the period between the two World Wars because the conviction gained ground that Grotius' body of thought could provide an answer to the question of how to clear away the violence of war and cultivate a lasting peace' (Grotius Collection, Peace Palace Library, Carnegie Foundation, online).
The present edition combines The Law of War with Grotius' much earlier and shorter De Mare Libero of 1609. 'It is generally accepted today that this treatise penned by Grotius forms one of the most important cornerstones in the origin of the moral Law of Nations' (ibid.).
Ter Meulen & Diermanse, 611.
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