Prussia interfered in the internal affairs of Holland in favour of William V., and with an army under the Duke of Brunswick, overthrew the liberal party, and restored the Stattholder to the plenitude of his authority, which was guaranteed by the triple alliance of 1788 between Great Britain, Prussia, and Holland. This triple alliance interfered between the Emperor Joseph II., of Austria, and his revolted subjects in Belgium, at the Congress of the Hague, in 1790, forcing the latter to submit to the imperial authority. The same powers compelled Denmark to withdraw the co-operation she had furnished Russia against Sweden in 1788, and the war was terminated by the peace of Werela, in 1790. The wars between Austria and the Porte, and Russia and the Porte, were also terminated under the mediation of the triple alliance, the former by the treaty of Szistowe, in 1791, and the latter by the treaty of Jassy, in 1792. But the most important event of this period was the revolt of the British provinces in North America, and the war of the American Revolution, in which France afforded material aid to the revolutionary party. This war was terminated by the treaty of Versailles, in 1783, by which Great Britain recognised the independence of her revolted colonies, and the United States of America took their place as a sovereign State among the nations of the world.1

§ 23. The more important questions of international law, agitated during this period, were those in reference to the rights of sovereignty and independence, arising out of the partition of Poland and the Bavarian succession; the right of mediation, arising out of the interference of the triple alliance in the wars of Russia, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, and the Porte; the right of intervention, arising out of the interference of Prussia in the affairs of Holland, and of the triple alliance in the affairs of Belgium; and the right of revolution, arising out of the revolt of the British provinces of North America. Important questions of maritime jurisprudence were also agitated during this period, such as the rule of free ships free goods, which was recognised and attempted to be established by the French Ordinance of 1778; the rights of neutral commerce, declared by the armed neutrality of 1780; and the abolition of privateering, as agreed upon by Prussia and

1 Ompteda, Literatur und Völkerrecht; Grahame, History of the United States; Bancroft, History of the United States.

the United States in the treaty negotiated by Franklin in 1785.1

§ 24. The most distinguished writers of this period, on questions of international law, were the Mosers, Lampredi, Galiani, Martens, Mirabeau, and Bentham.

John Jacob Moser (born in 1701, and died in 1785) first published a small work on international law in 1750; but the publication of his larger and more celebrated work in ten volumes, under the title of Essay on the Modern Law of European Nations' (Versuch des Neuesten Europäischen Völkerrechts), was commenced in 1777 and completed in 1780. He bases the principles of the law of nations on treaties and usages, and contends that the rules of that law must be inferred from examples, and cannot be applied à priori to test the validity of a particular precedent. His supplementary work, entitled 'Beiträge zu dem Europäischen Völkerrecht,' of which seven volumes had been published in 1781, was never completed. F. C. de Moser published his 'Kleine Schriften,' in twelve volumes, in 1751, and his 'Beiträge zu dem Europäischen Staats- und Völkerrecht,' in four volumes, in 1772. Gio M. Lampredi, an Italian (born in 1761, and died in 1836), published at Leghorn, in 1778, his 'Juris Naturæ et Gentium,' in which he incidentally considered questions relating to the rights of belligerents and neutrals. This work was severely criticised by the Abbé Galiani. In 1788 he published, at Florence, another work, entitled 'Commercio dei Popoli Neutrali in tempo di Guerra,' in which he returned the compliment by criticising the work of the Abbé. This latter work, entitled 'Dei Doveri dei Principi Neutrali,' etc., was first published at Naples, in 1782. Its author, the Abbé Fernando Galiani, was born in 1728, and died in 1787. Lampredi's second work was translated into French by Jacques Peuchet, and published at Paris in 1802, under the title of 'Du Commerce des Neutres en temps de Guerre.' George Frederick von Martens was born at Hamburg in 1756, and died in 1821. A syllabus of his lectures at the University of Göttingen, on international law, was first published in 1785, but this work was afterwards enlarged, and published in French in 1788, under the title of

1 Wheaton, Hist. Law of Nations, pp. 269-328; Franklin, Life and Works, vol. ii. p. 448; Russell, Hist. Mod. Europe, vol. iii.; Rotteck, Hist. of the World, vol. iii.; Sparks, Dip. Cor. of the American Revolution; Pitkin, Civil and Pol. Hist. U. States.

'Précis du Droit des Gens Moderne de l'Europe.' The subsequent works of Martens will be noticed in another place. Count Honoré Mirabeau was born in 1749, and died in 1791. His work on the Prussian Monarchy, and his speeches on great national questions during the early part of the French Revolution, have given a world-renown to his name. In his work, entitled 'Doutes sur la Liberté de l'Escaut,' he most ably defended the cause of Holland in the question of the free navigation of the Scheldt, which was settled by the treaty of Fontainebleau in 1785. Jereiny Bentham was born in 1749, and died in 1832. His essay on international law was written at various dates between 1786 and 1789, but he never completed the work, these fragments being published at a later period. His plan for a perpetual and universal peace, although utterly impracticable, has formed the basis of numerous peace societies in England and the United States.

In addition to the foregoing list of distinguished authors, we will briefly refer to a few others who have written on this subject. J. J. Neyron published, in 1783, a small work on the principles of the law of nations, which was followed by others. Charles T. Gunther published, in 1777, an anonymous work on this subject, which was followed, in 1787 and 1792, by the first and second volumes of his Europäisches Völkerrecht in Friedenszeiten' (European law of nations in time of peace), a work which he did not live to complete. C. H. van Romer published his 'Völkerrecht der Deutschen ' in 1789, at Halle. Frederick Aug. William Wench published the first volume of his 'Codex Juris Gentium Recentissimi' in 1781, and the third in 1796. Schmass published, in 1774, his Corpus Juris Publici Academicum, which was augmented by Hommel in 1794. We must not conclude this list of writers on international law without mentioning the name of Benjamin Franklin, the American statesman and philosopher, who wrote against privateering, and was the negotiator of the treaty of 1785, between the United States and Prussia, for its suppression. He was born at Boston in 1706, and died in 1790.

From the Beginning of the French Revolution to the Congress of Vienna, 1789-1815.

§ 25. The conflict of opinions and interests growing out of

the events of the French Revolution engendered a war which soon involved nearly all the nations of Europe, and finally embraced in its tortuous folds the sparsely populated continent of America. It is not necessary to particularise here each separate declaration of war, or to notice the cause which produced it and the treaty by which it was suspended or finally terminated. This contest had its origin in a violation of the rights of independent and sovereign States, by the armed intervention of the allies in the internal affairs of France, on the one side, and by the efforts of the French propagandists, on the other, to revolutionise the governments of other countries. The whole period-from 1789 to 1815is marked by encroachments on the true principles of international law, and a total disregard of the rights of the smaller States was manifested by the treaties of Paris and Vienna, by which the peace of Europe was restored. The war of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain originated in violations of the maritime law of nations, by the capture and confiscation of American vessels engaged in neutral trade, and the impressment of American seamen on the high seas, under the pretext of exercising the right of search for British subjects by virtue of the municipal laws of Great Britain. This war was terminated by the treaty of Ghent, in 1814, on the basis of the status quo ante bellum, leaving undecided the questions in which it originated.2

§ 26. The political discussions of this period embraced almost the entire range of diplomacy, and questions were agitated respecting nearly every established principle of the law of nations. Among those of most interest we may mention the right of armed intervention in the internal affairs of independent sovereign States, growing out of the French Revolution in 1789; the rights of war with respect to private property on land, including booty, pillage, and military contributions; the rights of military occupation and conquest; the law of sieges and blockades; the treatment due to prisoners of war, with the right and duty of exchange; and the general rules which should regulate the pacific

1 See vol. ii. pp. 300-303.

2 Wheaton, Hist. Law of Nations, pp. 345, 425; Mackintosh, Miscel. Works, pp. 461-465; Jomini, Les Guerres de la Révolution; Jomini, Vie Pol. et Mil. de Napoléon; Alison, Hist. of Europe, first series; Armstrong, Notices of the War of 1812.

intercourse of belligerents. The controverted questions of maritime law included almost every right of neutral commerce; the term contraband of war was extended to include nearly everything in which a neutral could trade with profit; whole coasts were blockaded by mere decrees and orders in council; colonial and coasting trade was closed to neutrals, their vessels were searched, and their seamen impressed, in virtue of merely local and municipal laws. In fine, every imaginable pretext was resorted to in order to destroy the commerce of neutral States, or to force them to abandon their neutrality and join the dominant maritime power of Europe, which sought, and almost acquired, the entire control of the seas.1

§ 27. This was eminently a period of action and of great events, rather than of calm discussion and philosophical investigation. Although questions of international law were frequently discussed with learning and ability in diplomatic correspondence and state papers, the works of professed text-writers on this branch of jurisprudence were neither very numerous nor of a very marked character. Nevertheless, there were published, during this period, a number of works worthy of particular notice, and among the authors who wrote or published at this time, we may mention Azuni, Martens, Kant, Koch, Savigny, Ward, Mackintosh, Dou, Flassan, Rayneval, etc.

Domenico Alberto Azuni, a native of the island of Sardinia (died 1827), published his 'Sistema Universale dei Principii del Diritto Marittimo dell' Europa' in 1795; but the work was afterwards remodelled and enlarged, and published in French in 1797, under the title of Droit Maritime de l'Europe.' A translation, by Mr. Johnson, was published in New York, in 1806. George Frederick von Martens, who has already been mentioned, published during this period several important works connected with diplomacy and the treaties celebrated between the different States of Europe. The great German philosopher, Emanuel Kant (born 1724, died 1804), as a writer on international law, properly belongs to this period, although a portion of his works were published at an earlier date. That part of his works relating to the law of nations was translated into French and published in Paris

1 Napoleon, Memoirs dictated at St. Helena.