Abstract
The following chapter aims to elucidate the driving function of solidarism in the establishment of an international law system between 1899 and 1907. Through successive adjustments, Léon Bourgeois’s works underwent various reformulations that moved the solidarist project outside of the nation-state context. In this regard, the social interdependence of individuals, which is the fundamental assumption of solidarism, prefigures the legal relationships between sovereign states. By developing an international understanding of solidarism, Léon Bourgeois succeeded in enshrining the idea of solidarity in public international law and anticipated a conception of welfare internationalism which was then still in its infancy. This expansion of the solidarist theory is a key step in the institutionalization of peace. As a project aimed at achieving multilateral parliamentary diplomacy, the solidarist synthesis was instrumentalized for political purposes by the young French Radical Party. During the first Hague Conference, Léon Bourgeois, as a promoter of international arbitration, wished to ‘establish law’s empire’ across the whole world. As illustrated by the insertion of article 27 in the Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes signed on 29 July 1899, the codification of various reciprocal obligations was based on a relationship of contractual solidarity between the states. Following on from the ratification of the Convention by 14 states, Léon Bourgeois’s positivism integrates, within his doctrine, the Kantian distinction between the wide duties of morality and the narrow duties of law. In retrospect, the theoretical and normative aspects of the solidarist doctrine appear as a broad matrix allowing for the codification of a new public international law.
The sources of this research are almost exclusively extracted from documents written in French. In this context, all quotations in this paper are translated from French to English by the author, who assumes full responsibility for this work. The author’s thanks are due to Gregory Bligh and Tanguy Pasquiet-Briand for their reading and feedback.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
The methodical inventory of the Hague Conferences’ work was mainly commented on by A. Mérignhac, La Conférence internationale de la Paix: étude historique, exégétique et critique des travaux et des résolutions de la Conférence de la Haye de 1899, Paris: A. Rousseau, 1900 and by E. Lémonon, Seconde Conférence de la Paix, La Haye (juin-octobre 1907), Paris: F. Pichon et Durand-Auzias, 1908.
- 2.
Confidential memo by Léon Bourgeois, in Ministères des Affaires Étrangères, Documents diplomatiques français (1871–1914), Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, vol. XV, 25 mai 1899, p. 312.
- 3.
M. Paléologue, Journal de l’Affaire Dreyfus (1814–1899). L’Affaire Dreyfus et le Quai d’Orsay, Paris: Plon, 1955, p. 129.
- 4.
P. Renouvin, ‘Les relations franco-russes à la fin du XIXe siècle et au début du XXème siècle’, in Cahiers du monde russe et soviétique, vol. I, n°1, Mai 1959, p. 132.
- 5.
Ministère des Affaires étrangères, Commission de publication des documents relatifs aux origines de la guerre de 1914, Documents diplomatiques français (1871–1914), Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1959, t. XV, 15 mai 1899, pp. 284–286.
- 6.
E. Staal, Conférence internationale de la Paix, La Haye, 18 mai-29 juillet 1899, Procès-Verbaux, 1ère partie, séance de clôture du 29 juillet 1899, p. 212.
- 7.
Speech delivered by L. Renault in Groupe parlementaire français pour l’arbitrage, La Deuxième Conférence de la Haye: Discours prononcés à la séance de rentrée du groupe de l’arbitrage, Paris: Delagrave, 1908, p. 42.
- 8.
This specific proposal was admitted and voted for unanimously during the 1907 Conference.
- 9.
‘Préface’ in Groupe parlementaire français pour l’arbitrage.
- 10.
M. Chemiller-Gendreau, ‘Souveraineté et mondialisation’ in L’Humanité face à la mondialisation, Paris: L’Harmattan, 1997, p. 76.
- 11.
In this regard, Ferdinand Buisson created the popular university La solidarité, where he gave lectures under the title of a ‘History of ethics’ each Friday in the 13th arrondissement in Paris. On the international level, Buisson supported the right of peoples to self-determination and strongly objected to the oppression of minorities (the Poles, the Slavs, the Italians from Austria, and the post-war Armenians). In a letter addressed to Joseph Reinach, Buisson wrote: ‘I am very grateful, my dear sir, for your kind invitation: all my Fridays are regrettably dedicated to the popular university of the thirteenth borough of Paris where I keep teaching a History of ethics which, as you may imagine, is far from finished […]’. (BN-Mss-NAF 24874 [641], undated letter with letterhead: ‘Ferdinand Buisson, professeur à l’Université de Paris, 166 Boulevard du Montparnasse’).
- 12.
French Section for a Workers’ International (Section Française de l’Internationale Ouvrière).
- 13.
S. Berstein, ‘Le milieu genevois dans la France de l’entre-deux-guerres’ in Les Internationales et le problème de la guerre au XX ème siècle. Actes du colloque de Rome (22–24 novembre 1984), Rome: Publications de l’École française de Rome, 1987, p. 322.
- 14.
A. Marès, ‘Essai sur l’évolution de l’idée d’arbitrage international depuis les origines jusqu’au Protocole du 1er octobre 1924’, Thèse pour le doctorat politique, Université de Montpellier, Faculté de droit, Montpellier: Firmin et Montane, 1925, p. 11.
- 15.
‘Radicalism of the beginning of the century is also an ideology, a set of values and convictions that impress, to varying extents, the vision of the world and the political behaviour of men that claim it. It is trite to notice that these convictions are less dictated by an intellectual system than inspired by a range of traditions, of references to the history of the republican ideal and of the republican movement.’ G. Baal, ‘Le Parti radical de 1901 à 1914’, Thèse de doctorat d’Histoire, Université Paris I: thesis manuscript, 1991, p. 2.
- 16.
The first Hague Conference was such a priority in Léon Bourgeois’s mind, in order to introduce law and justice in international relations and to focus fully on arbitration proceedings, that he declined the telegraphed proposal sent by Raymond Poincaré, commissioned by Émile Loubet to form a new government, asking Bourgeois to accept the foreign affairs ministerial portfolio.
- 17.
L. Bourgeois, Pour la Société des Nations, 1er vol., Paris: Georges Crès, 1913, p. 13: ‘We can say that all the european diplomatic arrangements in contemporary times were determined of influenced by the malaise of Europe: if we look at them closely, the Triple Alliance constitution, the French-Russian alliance, the Triple Entente did not have other source and their continuation did not have other cause.’
- 18.
Ibid.
- 19.
Ibid., p. 14: ‘The Cabinet policy keeps looking for the guarantees of peace as in the days of the Treaties of Westphalia, of Utrecht and of Vienna. […] The diplomacy that is inspired by this policy pretends to qualify itself as realistic and prevents from being based on the law principles.’
- 20.
Ibid., p. 15.
- 21.
Speech delivered by L. Bourgeois in Groupe parlementaire (…), op. cit., p. 63.
- 22.
Ibid., p. 64.
- 23.
C. Rumillat, ‘Le Solidarisme au 19ème siècle. Recherche d’une politique positive’, Thèse pour le doctorat de science politique, Institut d’Études Politiques de Grenoble: thesis manuscript, 1986, p. 15.
- 24.
L. Bourgeois, op. cit., p. 273.
- 25.
To explicitly understand the quasi-contract notion, partly taken up by Léon Bourgeois, it is necessary to refer to C. Bouglé, ‘L’évolution du solidarisme’ in Revue politique et parlementaire, vol. XXXV, p. 486.
- 26.
L. Bourgeois, Congrès international de l’Éducation sociale. Rapports et comptes rendus, Paris: F. Alcan, 1901, p. 80.
- 27.
Preamble of the Convention on the pacific settlement of international disputes.
- 28.
Authors such as Saadia Touval and William I. Zartman specify that a mediator, whether he/she is the representative of a powerful international force, a medium international force, or even an international organization, would usually intervene to resolve the dispute only in order for his/her own interests to prevail.
- 29.
Marès, Essai sur l’évolution, p. 13.
- 30.
It must be noted that mediation had already been used in the context of the Paris Treaty in 1856.
- 31.
L. Bourgeois, Congrès international de l’Éducation sociale, p. 43.
- 32.
See O. Hoijer, La solution pacifique des litiges internationaux avant et depuis la Société des Nations, Paris: Éditions Spes, 1925, p. 202.
- 33.
Mentioned by A. Charpentier, Le Parti radical et radical-socialiste à travers ses Congrès (1910–1911), Paris: Éditions Giard et E. Brière, 1913, p. 410.
- 34.
S. Bertein, Histoire du parti radical, 1. La recherche de l’âge d’or, 1919–1926, Paris: Presses de la Fondation nationale des Sciences politiques, 1980, p. 65.
- 35.
Ibid.
- 36.
J. Cabouat, La Société des Nations d’après M. Léon Bourgeois, Paris: Bureaux de la Revue politique et parlementaire, 1910, p. 4.
- 37.
C. Nicault, ’Léon Bourgeois, militant de la paix’, in A. Niesse and M. Vaïsse, Léon Bourgeois. Du solidarisme à la Société des Nations, Langres: Éditions Dominique Guéniot, 2006, p. 53.
- 38.
Extracted from a speech delivered by Léon Bourgeois in Group parlementaire français pour l’arbitrage, p. 51.
- 39.
C. Delton, ‘Le Devenir des relations internationales: Réflexion sur la philosophie de la paix des grandes organisations internationales’, Thèse pour le doctorat, Université de Paris XII-Val de Marne, Faculté de Philosophie: thesis manuscript, 2004, p. 246.
- 40.
The first Hague Conference brought together 26 states (with a majority of 20 European states). During the second one, 44 states were represented (including 19 American states and 4 Asian states). See L. Cavaré, Droit international public positif, Paris: Éditions Pédone, 1961, p. 207.
- 41.
See the report on the Second Peace Conference in Conférence de la Paix, Deuxième conference internationale de la paix (Ministère des affaires étrangères, documents diplomatiques), Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1908, p. 244.
- 42.
Note, however, that the 1899 Conference only produced a petitio principis formulated in a ‘Declaration’ extracted from the unanimity of participants by Léon Bourgeois.
- 43.
L. Bourgeois, Le Pacte de 1919 et la Société des Nations, Paris: Bibliothèque Charpentier, p.1.
- 44.
F. Lekeal, ’La guerre anticipée: normes juridiques et violences de guerre’ (table ronde) in La violence de guerre 1939–1945, Brussels:Éditions Complexe, 2002, p. 57.
- 45.
Opening speech of Arbitration Commission’s works delivered by Léon Bourgeois in Pour la Société des Nations, op. cit., p. 43.
- 46.
G. Scelle, Précis de droit des gens: principes et systématiques. Première partie: introduction, le milieu intersocial, Paris: Sirey, 1932, p. 19.
- 47.
S. Audier, Léon Bourgeois. Fonder la solidarité, Paris: Éditions Michalon, 2007, p. 95.
- 48.
See L. Bourgeois, L’œuvre de la Société des Nations, Paris: Payot, 1923, p. 442.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Tixier, C. (2017). The Legacy of Léon Bourgeois: From the Solidarist Doctrine to the Emergence of International Arbitration. In: Olmstead, J. (eds) Reconsidering Peace and Patriotism during the First World War. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51301-0_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51301-0_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-51300-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-51301-0
eBook Packages: HistoryHistory (R0)