Johann Caspar (also Kaspar) Bluntschli (7 March 1808 – 21 October 1881) was a
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
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* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
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*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
jurist
A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...
and politician.
[ Together with fellow liberals ]Francis Lieber
Francis Lieber (March 18, 1798 or 1800 – October 2, 1872), known as Franz Lieber in Germany, was a German-American jurist, gymnast and political philosopher. He edited an ''Encyclopaedia Americana''. He was the author of the Lieber Code during ...
and Édouard René de Laboulaye
__NOTOC__
Édouard René Lefèbvre de Laboulaye (; 18 January 1811 – 25 May 1883) was a French jurist, poet, author and anti-slavery activist. In 1865, he originated the idea of a monument presented by the French people to the United States tha ...
, he developed one of the first codes of international law and war.
Biography
He was born in Zürich
Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
to a soap and candle manufacturer. From school he passed into the Politische Institut (a seminary of law and political science) in his native town, and proceeding thence to the universities of Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
and Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...
, took the degree of doctor juris in the latter in 1829.[ There the following citations are to be found:
*''Denkwürdiges aus meinem Leben'' (autobiography, 1884)
* Franz von Holtzendorff, ''Bluntschli und seine Verdienste um die Staatswissenschaften'' (1882)
*Brockhaus, ''Konversations-Lexicon'' (1901)
*
]
Returning to Zürich in 1830, he threw himself with ardour into the political strife which was at the time unsettling all the cantons of the Confederation, and in this year published ''Über die Verfassung der Stadt Zürich'' (On the Constitution of the City of Zürich). This was followed by ''Das Volk und der Souverän'' (1830), a work in which, while pleading for constitutional government, he showed his bitter repugnance of the growing Swiss radicalism. Elected in 1837 a member of the Great Council (german: link=no, Grosser Rath), he became the champion of the moderate conservative party.[
Fascinated by the ]metaphysical
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...
views of the philosopher Friedrich Rohmer (1814–1856), a man who attracted little other attention, he endeavoured in ''Psychologische Studien über Staat und Kirche'' (1844) to apply them to political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
generally, and in particular as a panacea for the constitutional troubles of Switzerland. Bluntschli, shortly before his death, remarked, "I have gained renown as a jurist, but my greatest desert is to have comprehended Rohmer." This philosophical essay, however, coupled with his uncompromising attitude towards both radicalism and ultramontanism
Ultramontanism is a clerical political conception within the Catholic Church that places strong emphasis on the prerogatives and powers of the Pope. It contrasts with Gallicanism, the belief that popular civil authority—often represented by th ...
, brought him many enemies, and rendered his continuance in the council, of which he had been elected president, impossible. He resigned his seat, and on the overthrow of the Sonderbund
The Sonderbund War (german: Sonderbundskrieg, fr , Guerre du Sonderbund, it , Guerra del Sonderbund) of November 1847 was a civil war in Switzerland, then still a relatively loose confederacy of cantons. It ensued after seven Catholic cantons ...
in 1847, perceiving that all hope of power for his party was lost, took leave of Switzerland with the pamphlet ''Stimme eines Schweizers über die Bundesreform'' (1847), and settled at Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, where he became professor of constitutional law in 1848[ at the ]Ludwig Maximilian University
The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...
.
Upon resettling in Germany, Bluntschli's stance became more liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
and he elaborated an ethical Hegelian theory of the state which was highly influential among both German and American liberals. At Munich he devoted himself with energy to the special work of his chair, and published ''Allgemeines Staatsrecht'' (1851–1852); ''Lehre vom modernen Staat'' (1875–1876); and, in conjunction with Karl Ludwig Theodor Brater Karl may refer to:
People
* Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name
* Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne
* Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer
* Karl of Austria, last Austria ...
(1819–1869), ''Deutsches Staatswörterbuch'' (11 vols, 1857–1870; abridged by Edgar Loening
Edgar is a commonly used English given name, from an Anglo-Saxon name ''Eadgar'' (composed of '' ead'' "rich, prosperous" and ''gar'' "spear").
Like most Anglo-Saxon names, it fell out of use by the later medieval period; it was, however, rev ...
in 3 vols., 1869–1875). Meanwhile, he had assiduously worked at his code for the canton of Zürich, ''Privatrechtliches Gesetzbuch für den Kanton Zürich'' (1854–1856), a work which was much praised at the time, and which, particularly the section devoted to contracts, served as a model for codes both in Switzerland and other countries.[
In 1861 Bluntschli received a call to ]Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
as professor of constitutional law (Staatsrecht), where he again entered the political arena, endeavouring in his ''Geschichte des allgemeinen Staatsrechts und der Politik'' (1864) to stimulate, as he said, the political consciousness of the German people, to cleanse it of prejudices and to further it intellectually. He was a Freemason and was Master of Lodge Ruprecht zu den fünf Rosen and in 1865 published a public letter against Pope Pius IX's apostolic exhortation '' Multiplices inter''.[Eugen Lennhoff, Oskar Posner, Dieter A. Binder. ''Internationales Freimaurer Lexikon''. (5th revised ed.) Herbig Verlag, Munich, 2006. .] In his new home, Baden
Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine.
History
The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
, he devoted his energies and political influence, during the Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
of 1866, towards keeping the country neutral. From this time Bluntschli became active in the field of international law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
, and his fame as a jurist belongs rather to this province than to that of constitutional law. His ''Das moderne Kriegsrecht'' (1866); ''Das moderne Völkerrecht der zivilisierten Staaten, als Rechtsbuch dargestellt'' (1868), and ''Das Beuterecht im Krieg'' (1878) are likely to remain invaluable text-books in this branch of the science of jurisprudence. He also wrote a pamphlet on the Alabama case.[ His work on the laws of war and public international law were influenced by a long correspondence with ]Francis Lieber
Francis Lieber (March 18, 1798 or 1800 – October 2, 1872), known as Franz Lieber in Germany, was a German-American jurist, gymnast and political philosopher. He edited an ''Encyclopaedia Americana''. He was the author of the Lieber Code during ...
, a German émigré to the United States.
Bluntschli was one of the founders, at Ghent
Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...
in 1873, of the Institute of International Law
The Institute of International Law ( French: Institut de Droit International) is an organization devoted to the study and development of international law, whose membership comprises the world's leading public international lawyers. The organizat ...
, and was the representative of the German emperor at the conference on the international laws of war at Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. He corresponded with the younger Gustave Rolin-Jaequemyns
Gustave Henri Ange Hippolyte Rolin-Jaequemyns (31 January 1835 – 9 January 1902) was a Belgian lawyer, diplomat and Minister of the Interior (1878–1884) as a member of the Liberal Party (Belgium), Unitarian Liberal Party. Together with the Sw ...
and Gustave Moynier
Gustave Moynier (21 September 1826 – 21 August 1910) was a Swiss Jurist who was active in many charitable organizations in Geneva.
He was a co-founder of the "International Committee for Relief to the Wounded", which became the International Com ...
about matters pertaining to International Humanitarian Law
International humanitarian law (IHL), also referred to as the laws of armed conflict, is the law that regulates the conduct of war (''jus in bello''). It is a branch of international law that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict by prot ...
and the Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
. During the latter years of his life he took a lively interest in the Protestantenverein The Protestantenverein (''Allgemeiner Deutscher Protestantenverein'' or ''Deutscher Protestantenverein''; DPV) was a society in Germany the general object of which was to promote the union (''Verein'') and progress of the various Protestant establi ...
, a society formed to combat reactionary and ultramontane views of theology.[
He was elected a foreign member of the ]Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...
in 1875.
He died suddenly at Karlsruhe on October 21, 1881. His library was acquired by Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
.[
Among his works, other than those before mentioned, may be cited ''Deutsches Privatrecht'' (1853–1854); ''Deutsche Slaatslehre für Gebildete'' (1874); and ''Deutsche Staatslehre und die heutige Staatenwelt'' (1880).][
]
References
* Gabor Hamza, "Entstehung und Entwicklung der modernen Privatrechtsordnungen und die römischrechtliche Tradition" (Budapest 2009) pp. 246–249.
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bluntschli, Johann Kaspar
1808 births
1881 deaths
International law scholars
Members of the Institut de Droit International
Politicians from Zürich
Heidelberg University faculty
Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
Swiss legal scholars