History of international law is a rapidly evolving field, opening uplines of inquiry on empire, commerce, war, peace, diplomacy and rights. Itoffersinsights into substantive law, placing legalknowledge inalarger intellectual, political and culturalcontext; a broader basis for theorization about law and its change over time; and a more critical and analytical approach to readingparticular texts and artefacts.

This module introduces LLM students to history of international law through two elements.The first is an overviewof the histories of international law. This will (1) introduce the different approaches to history (intellectual, cultural, diplomatic, etc) which have been most prominent in the study of international law; (2) explore trends and controversies in historiography (who has written histories; when, why and how); and (3) trace the development of international law as we understand it from earlier law of nations and natural law traditions.

The second element is a closer study of a particularaspect of international law, as a lens on the larger developments, and avenue into research for student essays. In 2022-23 this will be peace and peace-making, from the eighteenth century to the present. We will explore orthodox understandings of peace and war in the law of nations, international law and public law, and their relation to the larger universe of ideas about peace, and to peace-making practices. (Histories of International Law willcomplement modules on contemporary Use of Force and International Humanitarian Law, with a more conceptual focus; more historical contextualisation of doctrinal developments; and an emphasis on pre-1945 periods. It will also intersect with the envisaged development of a new half-module in legal history in future years (to reflect new recruitment in this sub-field), which will focus primarily on the pre-eighteenth century).

We will have a strong emphasis on not only learning but doing history. Some readings will be 'primary' sources (i.e., materials produced by the actors whose history we are studying), and we will consider how to read and interpret these: what do they capture and obscure? How do our readings differ if we read as historians rather than lawyers? We will approach secondary readings not only as sources of information but as arguments to be dissected: what concepts and approaches are being deployed? How else might this phenomenon be analyzed? We will also integrate introductory sessions on use of archival materials, to help students advance their personal research.

There are no formal prerequisites, butsome familiarity with public international law (equivalent to that obtained in an undergraduate law course) is assumed. Students without this will need to do further reading, on which I will provide guidance. No particular study in history is required. Those with prior study in history should still find the module challenging, as the emphasis on law of nations / international law is likely to provide a cross-cutting approach to other historical fields.