Current Legal Issues: The Use of Force in International Law

1. Current Legal Issues: The Use of Force in International Law Historical foundations

2. Introduction • Classical Greece (ie. From around the 6th century BC to about the 3rd century BC) has been very important to European thought • A love of knowledge, constant questioning & analysis of man and nature were common themes in Ancient Greece • This was spread throughout Europe by Greece and then by Rome (which adopted Greek culture and learning) • See Shaw at pp16-18 for more details

3. Ancient Greece

4. Ancient Greece Classical Greece last for 200 years – from 5th-4th century BC • What was “ancient Greece”? • A civilisation based around Athens that lasted from approximately 8th/6th century BC – 600AD • The ancient Greeks belonged to an individual city-state (a polis) • Many treaties linked the city-states together • Rights were often granted to the citizens of the states in each other’s territories • Rules for protecting diplomatic envoys were developed • Rules regarding the declaration of war were developed • BUT there was no overall system of international law • Note: people who were non-Greek were viewed as ‘barbarians’ and were not entitled to the benefit of any of the Greek laws

5. Ancient Rome

6. Ancient Rome • What was “ancient Rome”? • A civilisation, centred on Rome, that lasted from approximately 510BC – 480AD • The Romans had great respect for the law and for organisation • The first Roman “laws” were established in the Twelve Tables around 439 BC – laws written on tablets and displayed in the Forum for all to read • The Twelve Tables came about because of the Plebians’ demands for a written code (so that magistrates wouldn’t apply the law arbitrarily) • Later, law was a means to unite and organise the various parts of the huge Roman Empire • Early Romans developed the jus gentium(which later became known as ‘the law of nations’), although originally it applied only to Roman citizens

7. Ancient Rome • Early Romans embraced “Natural Law”: • a body of rules of universal relevance • Rational and logical rules • Not restricted to any group – of worldwide relevance • Human powers of logic and deduction (reasoning) to be used to “discover” the law • This is the basis of modern international law

8. Ancient Rome continued… • The Roman laws were put together into the Corpus JurisCivilisin around 534 AD • This collating (bringing together of the laws) was ordered by Emperor Justinian I • After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Roman laws were largely forgotten until around the 11th century – Italy, University of Bologna set up to study the body of Roman laws • Roman law became popular again – was introduced or adopted into virtually all European countries • Today: the civil law of Europe is heavily based on the ancient Roman law • Even the common law system of England was influenced: many terms in UK law are still Latin (ie. originally from Rome)

9. The Middle Ages

10. The Middle Ages • What were “The Middle Ages”? • The period in European history from about the 5th to the 15th century AD • From the endof the Roman Empire until the beginning of the Renaissance & the Age of Enlightenment • This “middle” period is sometimes called “The Middle Ages”, sometimes “medieval” • What happened in the Middle Ages? • The power of the Church in Europe increased - Religious laws gained importance (“canon law”) • The Law Merchant (or lexmercatoria in Latin) was developed during the Middle Ages • It consisted of rules and customs that traders in Europe agreed upon • The Law Merchant was like an international law of business – it was a code, applicable to foreign traders, of universal application • The Law Merchant was gradually replaced by national laws, but some of it remains alive today

11. The Middle Ages continued • Justinian’s code was rediscovered in 1070 and became popular in late Middle Ages • At this time in Africa and Middle East, the Islamic Empire was growing • In the late Middle Ages (from 13th century onwards) the Ottoman Empire grew in strength to rival European influence • The Middle Ages saw a lot of religious warfare within the Church (the Great Schism) and between Christianity and Islam (the Crusades eg the 1st Crusade in 1088 to seize control of Jerusalem back from the Muslims) • Salah-adeen had taken Jersulam in 1187 and the Third Crusade was launched to get it back from him • There was a great deal of war and fighting e.g. The Hundred Years War in Europe, reduced the population of France by half!

12. The Renaissance

13. The Renaissance • What was “The Renaissance”? • From the 14th-17th centuries • Began in Italy • Literally means “rebirth” • Return to classical Greek and Roman ideas • This period saw many important developments: • The invention of the printing press – a way to disseminate knowledge • The rise of the nation-states of England, France & Spain • An international community emerged • Decline of the Church, rise of ‘free-thinking’ • The doctrine of ‘sovereignty’ emerged

14. The doctrine of ‘sovereignty’ • What does this word mean? • “Supreme power or authority” • Supremacy of authority or rule as exercised by a sovereign or sovereign state. • The idea was first discussed by Jean Bodin(1530-1596) in 1576 • Bodin said that there must be a sovereign power, within the state, to make laws; that sovereign power would be the supreme legislator • This idea, in time, gave states supreme power in relation to other states – each state was ‘above the law’ • The concept of ‘sovereign states’ is usually dated to the signing of the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 when the modern ‘sovereign state’ was born

15. The 19th century • International law became ‘Euroentric’ • That means, focusing on European culture and history, to the exclusion of a wider view of the world • Democracy spread: individuals had a greater say in government • Nationalism: popular, especially with the unification of Germany and Italy • International law grew rapidly, international treaties and institutions also grew • International Committee of the Red Cross was founded in 1863 (responsible for the ‘Geneva Conventions’ and the humanization of conflict)

16. The 20th century • The First World War or WWI 1914-1918 • It led to self-questioning – states wanted to do something to stop another world war • The League of Nations was established after WWI, it had its headquarters in Geneva;it mainly consisted of European powers • At its height it had 58 members • The USA never joined (even though it was the US’ idea) and the USSR remained absent for most of the League’s existence (it joined later and left again) – see map on next slide) • The League of Nations failed to stop major conflicts from breaking out, ultimately it was a failure because World War II began in 1939 • Mussolini said: The League is well when sparrows shout, but no good at all when eagles fall out • Permanent Court of International Justice was established in 1921 (later the ICJ was established in 1946)

17. The League of Nations

19. The 20th century continued • The Second World War or WWII (1939-1945) led to the establishment of the United Nations (UN), the successor to the League of Nations • Headquarters in New York – a shift away from the previous centre of power in Europe • Trends that began in the 19th century continue today: • a vast increase in the number of international agreements and customs • development of international organisations that have continued to contribute to development of international law

20. Conclusion • The history of international law, and the use of force in particular, stretches back a long way • The history of civilization is connected with the history of the use of force • In the past, there were empires rather than states • Warfare was more common, it lasted longer, and more destructive in terms of people killed • The World Wars saw massive loss of human life • As a result, people wanted to make laws that would limit the resort to force – they tried it with the League of Nations, and tried again with the UN Charter