The most excellent Hugo Grotius, his three books treating of the rights of war & peace in the first is handled, whether any war be just : in the second is shewed, the causes of war, both just and unjust : in the third is declared, what in war is lawful, that is, unpunishable : with the annotations digested into the body of every chapter / translated into English by William Evats ...
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Title
The most excellent Hugo Grotius, his three books treating of the rights of war & peace in the first is handled, whether any war be just : in the second is shewed, the causes of war, both just and unjust : in the third is declared, what in war is lawful, that is, unpunishable : with the annotations digested into the body of every chapter / translated into English by William Evats ...
Author
Grotius, Hugo, 1583-1645.
Publication
London :: Printed by M.W. for Thomas Basset ... and Ralph Smith ...,
1682.
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Subject terms
International law.
War (International law)
Cite this Item
"The most excellent Hugo Grotius, his three books treating of the rights of war & peace in the first is handled, whether any war be just : in the second is shewed, the causes of war, both just and unjust : in the third is declared, what in war is lawful, that is, unpunishable : with the annotations digested into the body of every chapter / translated into English by William Evats ..." In the digital collection Early English Books Online 2. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/A42237.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 6, 2024.
Pages
XI. That fear in a Solemn War, by the Law of Nations, is no Just Excepti∣on.
But a Solemn War, that is, such a War as is on both sides publick and denounced, a∣mong many other things which (by that Right which we call external) it peculiarly enjoys, hath this also, That all promises made in that War, or that conduce to the concluding of it, are so firm and valid, that though they were caused through a fear unjustly brought, yet can they not be null'd or made void without the consent of him to whom they were made; because, as many other things, though in themselves not altogether just, yet are by the Law of Nations reputed so, so fear, though it be in either side unjustly caused, yet shall it in such a War by the same Law be accounted just: Which unless granted, it would follow that such solemn Wars, which are indeed but too frequent, could be neither moderated nor ended; both which are very expedient for the conservation of Mankind. And this we have reason to believe is that Right in War which Cicero tells us is to be kept even with Enemies, to whom also it was elsewhere said, That there were some Rights which an Enemy might retain, though in War, namely, Not such only as are allowed of by the Law of Nature, but some such also as are introduced by the consent of Nations. Neither doth it hence follow, That he who in an unjust War hath extorted any such thing may without the breach of piety or honesty retain what he hath thereby got, or compel another to perform such a promise sworn or unsworn. For internally, and in the very nature of the thing it still remains unjust. Neither can this internal injustice of the act be otherwise removed than by the new and absolutely free consent of the Pro∣miser. Again,