Despite its significant influence on international law, international relations, natural law and political thought in general, Grotius's Law of War and Peace has been virtually unavailable for many decades. Stephen Neff's edited and annotated version of the text rectifies this situation. Containing the substantive portion of the classic text, but shorn of extraneous material, this edited and annotated edition of one of the classic works of Western legal and political thought is intended for students and teachers in four primary areas: history of international law, history of political thought, history of international relations and history of philosophy.

The seven principal English-language versions of Grotius's classic work On the Law of War and Peace (1625) were published between 1654 and 1928. Either by design or serendipity, each of these appeared on the eve of, during, or immediately after a major international conflict. All major achievements in their time, they expressed an overriding conviction that Grotian insights would enlighten present-day readers and help to lessen the incidence and horrors of armed conflict. Drawing upon archival sources never used previously, this study considers the history of these translations and their different approaches to Grotius's complicated text. viii, 162, [8] pp.

In 1604-1605 Hugo Grotius wrote De iure praedae, a commentary on the law of booty and prize and a first step towards the Law of War and Peace of twenty years later. Not published in his own times, rediscovered in 1864, and subsequently published, it has been over-interpreted and under-studied. The sixteen essays in this volume discuss De iure praedae, its intellectual sources, personal and political circumstances and over-all consequences, exploring how Grotius as a humanist, theologian, jurist and politician proceeded in this his first exercise in the theory of natural law and rights. The essays are written by an international and interdisciplinary team of specialists, based on papers delivered at a conference at NIAS in Wassenaar in 2005. Originally published as Volumes 26 (2005), 27 (2006) and 28 (2007) of Brill's journal Grotiana.

Introduction By Edward Dumbauld. The Library Of Liberal Arts, No. 65.