The American Tradition of International Law

Abstract This volume, the first of two, charts the history and emergence of international law in the American common law tradition, from its English roots in the late 18th century to the outbreak of World War I in 1914. At the end of the 18th century it made little sense anywhere in the English-speaking world to talk of either international law or international lawyers, and yet fifty years later, international law had become a commonplace linguistic, legal, and political reality in America, and international lawyering had become a thriving profession. How do we account for the rise of international law in the United States? The answer cannot be simple, and it may never be complete. Yet, approaching this question may enable us to better account for the state of American international law today and to help to predict its future. The author addresses this complex issue by grouping those who played a part in the intellectual development of international law by their several roles: jurists, lawyers, judges, utopians, scientists, dreamers, and diplomats. Some individuals, of course, have acted several parts. He considers the history and development of the discipline from the very creation of the term international law, to its rise to prominence, and to the vast expectations for the discipline at the turn of the 19th century. The book explains how America has arrived at its present approach to international law and thus illuminates its distinctive foreign policy.