Right of conquest - Citizendia

The right of conquest is the purported right of a conqueror to territory taken by force of arms. A right is a legal or moral Entitlement or Permission. Rights are of vital importance in theories of Justice and deontological ethics Types of administrative and/or political territories include Many types of legally administered territories, each of which is a non-sovereign geographic area In the field of Law, the word force has two main meanings unlawful violence and lawful compulsion It was sometimes considered a principle of international law until the early 20th century. International law is the term commonly used for referring to the system of implicit and explicit agreements that bind together nation-states in adherence to recognized values and standards

Its defenders state that the acknowledgment of this right is simply an acknowledgment of the status quo, and that denial of the right is meaningless unless one is able and willing to use military force to deny it. Status quo is a Latin term meaning the present existing state of affairs or "the state in which" Furthermore, they note that granting such a right promotes peace, since it removes the justification for many wars by denying the legitimacy of violating the borders of a nation's de facto area of control. Peace, in the modern usage is a concept defined by the ideal state of relationship as absence of hostility at the international level that of a War. War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units Borders define geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions such as Governments States or subnational administrative A nation is a Human Cultural and Social Community. In as much as most members never meet each other yet feel a common bond it may be considered Also, historically strength in battle and fitness to command were not considered separate, (see Trial by Combat, and The Divine Right of Kings. Trial by combat (also wager of battle, trial by battle or judicial duel) was a method of Germanic law to settle accusations in the absence of The Divine Right of Kings is a general term that refers to the philosophy and ideas used to justify the authority and legitimacy of Monarchs in Medieval and )

Some argue that the idea comes from the fact that there have historically been few "good" leaders, (see King Richard I and Pope Alexander VI. Richard I (8 September 1157 &ndash 6 April 1199 was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death Pope Alexander VI ( 1 January 1431 &ndash 18 August 1503) born Roderic Llançol, later Roderic de Borja i Borja ( ) Conquest proved great military strength, and defence was considered one of the most important elements required of a king (see Lord Protector). Lord Protector is a particular British title for Heads of State with two meanings (and full styles at different periods of history Someone appealing to the right of conquest was most likely planning on standing as regent, rather than just robbing a land of its riches (like the Vandals and Mongols are regarded as having done). A regent, from the Latin regens "who reigns" is a person selected to act as Head of state (ruling or not because the ruler is a minor

Its critics respond that it rewards military aggression and thus may serve to promote rather than prevent war. In Psychology and other social and Behavioral sciences aggression refers to behavior that is intended to cause harm

The completion of colonial conquest of much of the world (see the Scramble for Africa), the devastation of World War I and World War II, and the alignment of both the United States and the Soviet Union with the principle of self determination led to the abandonment of the right of conquest in formal international law. The Scramble for Africa, also known as the Race for Africa, was the proliferation of conflicting European claims to African territory during the New World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Self-determination is defined as free choice of one’s own acts without external compulsion and especially as the freedom of the people of a given Territory to determine their The 1928 Kellogg-Briand Pact, the post-1945 Nuremberg Trials, the UN Charter, and the UN role in decolonization saw the progressive dismantling of this principle. The Kellogg-Briand Pact, also known as the Pact of Paris, after the city where it was signed on August 27, 1928, was an international treaty "providing The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after The United Nations Charter is the Treaty that forms and establishes the International organization called the United Nations. Decolonization refers to the undoing of Colonialism, the establishment of governance or authority through the creation of settlements by another country or jurisdiction Simultaneously, the UN Charter's guarantee of the "territorial integrity" of member states effectively froze out claims against prior conquests from this process. Territorial integrity is the principle under International law that nation-states should not attempt to promote Secessionist movements or to promote Border

Conquest and military occupation

In the post-Napoleonic era, the disposition of territory acquired under the principle of conquest must be conducted according to the laws of war. The law of war (also law of armed conflict, LOAC) is Law concerning acceptable practices relating to war Put simply, this will mean military occupation followed by a peace settlement. Belligerent military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army. If there is a territorial cession, then there must be a formal peace treaty. A peace treaty is an agreement between two hostile parties usually countries or governments that formally ends an armed conflict

References

Sharon Korman, The Right of Conquest: The Acquisition of Territory by Force in International Law and Practice, Oxford University Press, 1996.

Conquest and military occupation

References

See also