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The Legacy of Vattel's Droit des gens

Palgrave Macmillan
  • Reassesses the complicated legacy of Emer de Vattel’s Droit des gens, first published in 1758 but whose legacy endured until well into the twentieth century

  • Explores how Vattel’s work shaped international law, international relations theory, political thought and diplomatic practice

  • Takes a new approach to Vattel’s work and intellectual history more widely, investigating the complex reception history of the book and its historical context, beyond the text itself

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Table of contents (11 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-ix
  2. Back Matter

    Pages 285-296

About this book

This edited collection offers a reassessment of the complicated legacy of Emer de Vattel’s Droit des gens, first published in 1758. One of the most influential books in the history of international law and a major reference point in the fields of international relations theory and political thought, this book played a role in the transformation of diplomatic practice in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. But how did Vattel’s legacy take shape? The volume argues that the enduring relevance of Vattel’s Droit des gens cannot be explained in terms of doctrines and academic disciplines that formed in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Instead, the chapters show how the complex reception of this book took shape historically and why it had such a wide geographical and disciplinary appeal until well into the twentieth century. The volume charts its reception through translations, intellectual, ideological and political appropriations as well as new practical usages, and explores Vattel’s discursive and conceptual innovations. Drawing on a wide range of sources, such as archive memoranda and diplomatic correspondences, this volume offers new perspectives on the book’s historical contexts and cultures of reception, moving past the usual approach of focusing primarily on the text. In doing so, this edited collection forms a major contribution to this new direction of study in intellectual history in general and Vattel’s Droit des gens in particular.


Editors and Affiliations

  • Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands

    Koen Stapelbroek

  • Ca’ Foscari University Venice, Italy

    Antonio Trampus

About the editors

Koen Stapelbroek is Associate Professor at Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands. His research focuses on intellectual history and political thought.

Antonio Trampus is Professor of Modern History at Ca’ Foscari University Venice, Italy. His research focuses on cultural history and constitutionalism.



Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: The Legacy of Vattel's Droit des gens

  • Editors: Koen Stapelbroek, Antonio Trampus

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23838-4

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: History, History (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-23837-7Published: 24 August 2019

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-23840-7Published: 25 August 2020

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-23838-4Published: 13 August 2019

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: IX, 296

  • Number of Illustrations: 1 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Intellectual Studies, Political History, Legal History, Diplomacy

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 49.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 64.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 89.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access