ABSTRACT
In 1859 the Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Josef led his army to battle at Solferino, where he fought the Piedmontese and Napoleon III’s French army. The law does not try to be a perfect reflection of the moral universe or to make us perfectly moral. It governs certain aspects of our relations with one another and ignores others. The tendency of philosophers has been reinforced by the many law professors and political scientists who no longer see law as an embodiment of justice and equity. Laws that seem no longer tied to morality lose their grip on our conscience; laws that seem to flout morality inspire rebellion. The laws of war are more a product of practice than of theory; they arose out of a consideration of details, not abstract principles. The state must be distinguished from the government. The state, not the government, is the major player, the legal person, in international law.
