I want to pursue further the threads of a thesis about culture, civilization, and law.
Let's look at an example from the time of the Congress of Vienna, and look at Talleyrand, the most outspoken opponent of Russia and Prussia, and the first of his three arguments there: "...this era could only be ended and peace established by restoring law as the basis of international life; that the balance of Europe could not rest solely or mainly on power, but depended on mutual trust among states and nations arising from mutual respect for everyone's rights; and that all rights and titles to all kinds of possession and good, including those of individuals, nations, and states, were vitally connected with the rights of rulers to their thrones....", Schroeder, p. 530.
Thus the rule of law was finally counterposed to the divine right of kings, on the one hand, and to Jacobinism on the other.
But that is not the only point I want to make regarding this development.
No comments:
Post a Comment