ESIL Interest Group History of International Law

ESIL Interest Group History of International Law

Thursday 29 April 2021

BOOK: Dante FEDELE, The Medieval Foundations of International Law. Baldus de Ubaldis (1327-1400), Doctrine and Practice of the Ius Gentium [Legal History Library, 49; Studies in the History of International Law, 17, ed. Randall LESAFFER] (Leiden/Boston: Martinus Nijhoff/Brill, 2021). ISBN 978-90-04-44712-7

(image source: Brill)

On the book:

Dante Fedele’s new work of reference reveals the medieval foundations of international law through a comprehensive study of a key figure of late medieval legal scholarship: Baldus de Ubaldis (1327-1400). A student of Bartolus de Sassoferrato, Baldus wrote both extensive commentaries on Roman, canon and feudal law and thousands of consilia originating from particular cases. His writings dealt with numerous issues related to sovereignty, territorial jurisdiction, diplomacy and war, combining a rich conspectus of earlier scholarship with highly creative ideas that exercised a profound influence on later juristic thought. The detailed picture of the international law doctrines elaborated by a prominent medieval jurist offered in this study contributes to our understanding of the intellectual archaeology of international law. 

"Dr. Fedele’s monograph will no doubt become a necessary work of reference for any scholar interested in the history of international law. [...] Beyond the specific doctrines on particular areas of international law, Dr. Fedele’s study of Baldus shows how in the area of international governance, jurists sought to marshal different expressions of normativity." - Alain Wijffels, Foreword

 On the author:

Dante Fedele Ph.D. (2014), is Research Fellow at the CNRS (CHJ UMR 8025 - Lille). His publications on the history of diplomacy and international law include Naissance de la diplomatie moderne (XIIIe-XVIIe siècles). L’ambassadeur au croisement du droit, de l’éthique et de la politique (Nomos, 2017).

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