Written during Grotius’ exile and dedicated to his protector King Louis XIII, this is the frontispiece of his best-known legal work, De Iure Belli ac Pacis. As Henk Nellen so rightfully states in his biography of Grotius: “The goal of [this book] was to promote peace, and therefore the book was mainly about war”. It more specifically offers a reflection on the just causes of war. This book is one of the reasons why Grotius is sometimes referred to as the ‘father of international law’. There is quite some discussion as to whether he can in fact really been seen as the father of modern international law but most would in any case agree that he did have some influence on its development. In addition, and not without importance for the topic of this exhibition, he seems to have helped in secularizing law.
Hugo de Groot, De Iure Belli ac Pacis, book, 1625 [1498 C 18]