2020 IB Extended Essays

Jus in bello

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Cromwell’s campaign that will be analysed by using Grotius’ criteria: the Siege of Drogheda

(11 September, 1649) and the Sack of Wexford (11 October, 1649).

Jus ad bellum – Just War or Solemn War

Before analysing the battles at Drogheda and Wexford using Grotius’ theories, it must first be

established whether Cromwell’s invasion of Ireland was, as Grotius articulated, a ‘just war’ or

a ‘solemn war’. In other words, the theory of jus ad bellum in relation to Cromwell’s rationale

for going to war will be investigated. While the idea of a ‘just war’ had been laid out previously

by other scholars, Grotius expanded on the idea while also introducing the concept of a ‘solemn war’, of which what the causes are as well as what is permissible are both entirely different. 7

A ’just war’, as detailed in Book 2 of Grotius’ seminal doctrine, involves two differing parties

on unequal standing ground. One of the parties is the aggressor, who commits some form of

injury that starts the war, while the other party is the victim of aggression, who is just and has

ample reasoning to go to war. According to Grotius, the injury must be a violation of human

rights, and hence a ‘just war’ is justified on terms laid out by the laws of nature. In contrast, a

‘solemn war’ is caused by violations of the laws of nations rather than of nature. Each party

stands on equal legal ground, and third-party intervention is discouraged and disallowed.

Given that the parties are legal equals, punishment for most occurrences in the war is not necessary, with a few exceptions such as rape and use of poison. 8 Thus, a solemn war is

different to a just war in that there are more permissible reasons for going to war.

Grotius explained the just and unjust causes of war at great length, and upon analysing his

writings and preceding events, Cromwell’s invasion clearly fits the criteria for jus ad bellum ,

or a just war. There are a range of determinate factors to support this conclusion, but the

overriding factor is the rebellion in Ireland in 1641. In Book 2 of Grotius’ doctrine, he explains

that liberty is a part of the human nature that precedes all human conditions, and that to go to

war over such a desire would be unjust (Chapter 22, Section XI). Therefore, it is a reasonable

assessment that Ireland acting justly when it receded from the British monarchy in 1641,

forming Confederate Ireland. Furthermore, when a politic body has been broken up through

means such as rebellion, then the rights of those people are broken until a new governing body

7 Lokur et al., Philosophical Foundations of International Criminal Law: Correlating Thinkers (Brussels: Torkel Opsahl Academic EPublisher, 2018). 8 Lokur et al., Philosophical Foundations .

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