The Law of Nations


The Law of Nations: Or, Principles of the Law of Nature Applied to the Conduct and Affairs of Nations and Sovereigns is a legal treatise on international law by Emerich de Vattel, published in 1758.

Synopsis

The Law of Nations has been said to have modernized the entire practice of international law.

Influence

Centuries after his death it was found that United States President George Washington had a number of overdue library books dating back over 221 years. One of them was The Law of Nations.
Swiss editor Charles W.F. Dumas sent Benjamin Franklin three original French copies of the book. Franklin presented one copy to the Library Company of Philadelphia. On December 9, 1775, Franklin thanked Dumas:
Franklin also said that this book by Vattel, "has been continually in the hands of the members of our Congress now sitting".
It provides at least a partial legal basis for modern conscription in the United States. In the Selective Draft Law Cases, upholding the Selective Service Act of 1917, the court stated:

English editions

Vattel’s Law of Nations was translated into English in 1760, based on the French original of 1758. A Dublin translation of 1787 does not include notes from the original nor posthumous notes added to the 1773 French edition. Several other English editions were based on the edition of 1760. However, an English edition from 1793 includes Vattel’s later thoughts, as did the London 1797 edition. The 1797 edition has a detailed table of contents and margin titles for subsections.

Footnotes