Commerce had become a “reason of state” in the eighteenth century. With the publication of Smith’s Wealth of Nations, the idea that free international trade was economically beneficial however gradually gained prominence. The long nineteenth century indeed saw timid – bilateral – attempts to implement the new politico-economic philosophy. Yet the First World War and the Great Depression destroyed almost all trade liberalisation already achieved, and the neo-mercantilist policies of the 1920s and 1930s seemed to turn the wheels of commerce backwards. Nonetheless: after the Second World War the belief that a peaceful world order could only be founded on a stable international economic order emerged strengthened; and a number of institutional attempts to liberalise – and harness – the world economy were immediately made, culminating in the creation of the 1947 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

From the “Closed” to the “Open” Commercial State: A Very Brief History of International Economic Law / Schuetze, Robert. - In: JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF INTERNATIONAL LAW. - ISSN 1388-199X. - 19:4(2017), pp. 495-524. [10.1163/15718050-19221001]

From the “Closed” to the “Open” Commercial State: A Very Brief History of International Economic Law

Schuetze
2017

Abstract

Commerce had become a “reason of state” in the eighteenth century. With the publication of Smith’s Wealth of Nations, the idea that free international trade was economically beneficial however gradually gained prominence. The long nineteenth century indeed saw timid – bilateral – attempts to implement the new politico-economic philosophy. Yet the First World War and the Great Depression destroyed almost all trade liberalisation already achieved, and the neo-mercantilist policies of the 1920s and 1930s seemed to turn the wheels of commerce backwards. Nonetheless: after the Second World War the belief that a peaceful world order could only be founded on a stable international economic order emerged strengthened; and a number of institutional attempts to liberalise – and harness – the world economy were immediately made, culminating in the creation of the 1947 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
2017
Adam Smith; David Ricardo; Methuen Treaty; Cobden-Chevalier Treaty; United States; League of Nations; International Trade Organization; GATT
From the “Closed” to the “Open” Commercial State: A Very Brief History of International Economic Law / Schuetze, Robert. - In: JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF INTERNATIONAL LAW. - ISSN 1388-199X. - 19:4(2017), pp. 495-524. [10.1163/15718050-19221001]
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
Schutze_Brief History.pdf

Solo gestori archivio

Tipologia: Documento in Post-print
Licenza: DRM (Digital rights management) non definiti
Dimensione 554.84 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
554.84 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11385/193102
Citazioni
  • Scopus 2
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 1
social impact