Quotes by Hugo Grotius
1583 – 1645
Hugo Grotius (1583-1645) was a Dutch scholar and jurist whose legal masterpiece, De Jure Belli ac Pacis (On the law of war and peace) (1625), contributed significantly to the formation of international law as a distinct discipline. In addition to that work, Grotius wrote a number of literary pieces of lasting merit, including Sacra (a collection of Latin poems) and the drama Christus Patiens. Like Erasmus, Grotius sought to end the religious schism and urged the papacy to reconcile with the Protestant faiths.
Bio
See the Liberty Matters online discussion of Hugo Grotius on War and the State
Grotius featured as the April 2024 OLL Birthday. Read it here.
War & Peace
Hugo Grotius discusses the just causes of going to war, especially the idea that the capacity to wage war must be matched by the intent to do so (1625)
War & Peace
Hugo Grotius states that in an unjust war any acts of hostility done in that war are “unjust in themselves” (1625)
War & Peace
Hugo Grotius on sparing Civilian Property from Destruction in Time of War (1625)
War & Peace
Grotius on Moderation in Despoiling the Country of one’s Enemies (1625)
Property Rights
Hugo Grotius on the natural sociability of humans (1625)
War & Peace
Hugo Grotius on civil right being derived from civil power