Introduction

International criminal law, or something similar to it, has a very long history. Its closest European precursor before the modern era was the chivalric system that applied in the medieval era. The most notable of the trials that were related to this system was that of Peter von Hagenbach in Breisach in 1474. Although its status as a legal precedent is highly limited, the issues involved at that trial, superior orders, sexual offences, cooperation in evidence gathering, and pleas as to the jurisdiction of the court, have clear present-day relevance. The purpose of this chapter, however, is to introduce the modern history of international criminal prosecutions rather than provide a comprehensive overview of the entire history of the subject. Therefore we will start in the early part of the twentieth century, at the end of the First World War.

The commission on the responsibility of the authors of the war

After the First World War, the Allies set up a fifteen-member commission to investigate the responsibility for the start of the war, violations of the laws of war and what tribunal would be appropriate for trials. It reported in March 1919, determining that the central powers were responsible for starting the war and that there were violations of the laws of war and humanity. It recommended that high officials, including the Kaiser, be tried for ordering such crimes and on the basis of command responsibility.