The Idea of International Society

Erasmus, Vitoria, Gentili and Grotius

Ursula Vollerthun, James L. Richardson

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9781108417143
• eBook ISBN: 9781108271769
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: International Relations
• Index: Politics & International Relations

This book offers the first comprehensive account and re-appraisal of the formative phase of what is often termed the 'Grotian tradition' in international relations theory: the view that sovereign states are not free to act at will, but are akin to members of a society, bound by its norms. It examines the period from the later fifteenth to the mid-seventeenth centuries, focusing on four thinkers: Erasmus, Vitoria, Gentili and Grotius himself, and is structured by the author's concept of international society. Erasmus' views on international relations have been entirely neglected, but underlying his work is a consistent image of international society. The theologian Francisco de Vitoria concerns himself with its normative principles, the lawyer Alberico Gentili - unexpectedly, the central figure in the narrative - with its extensive practical applications. Grotius, however, does not re-affirm the concept, but wavers at crucial points. This book suggests that the Grotian tradition is a misnomer.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-title
• Title page
• Copyright information
• Table of contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Prologue: A Word about Words
• Introduction
• 1 Three Ways of Thinking about International Relations
• 2 Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam
• 3 Francisco de Vitoria
• 4 Alberico Gentili
• 5 Hugo Grotius
• Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index