Historical Development Of International Law
International law is referred with other names such as Public International Law or Law of Nations. International law has been prevalent from ancient times, though its concept differed from the modern law. It is believed that the ancient version of this law helped to pave the way for the modern international legal ideology. |
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Early civilizations like Mesopotamia had agreements similar to this law around 2100 BC. Another such notable agreement was made between Ramses II, Pharaoh of Egypt and Hattusilis III, the King of the Hittites in 1258 BC. In South Asia, ancient China was known to have such agreements. It is also believed that ancient Israel has dealt in international relationships.
The prevalence of international law is very well evident in Ancient Greece. The Greeks had many small independent states which functioned following its own inter-state rules of interaction. The Romans were believed to be experts in international law as most of their concepts still influence the present day law and agreements. The jus gentium or the Law of Nations forms the foundation of all present day laws. The Law of Nations facilitated relations between Roman citizens and foreigners.
With the fall of the Roman Empire and the rise of the independent states, the Justinian’s laws of the Roman Empire and the Canon law of the Catholic Church became more effective. With the expansion of the world, in terms of trade and commerce, there grew a need to establish a universal code of law to protect the interests of merchants from different countries. The Hanseatic League helped in establishing many practical international customs to facilitate trade and commerce between countries of the world.
The Hugo Grotius helped in forming our modern international law. The law stressed on principles such as promises to be honored and compensation to be given if another human is harmed. Finally, the League of Nations was born after the First World War. It was set to protect states from getting invaded by other countries, and thus prevents war and promotes peace. Though this could not prevent the Second World War, and this finally the United Nations was formed to establish peace in the world.
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