identifier: Brussels Declaration, 1874

reference: Brussels Declaration, 1874

title: Project of an International Declaration concerning the Laws and Customs of War. Brussels, 27 August 1874.

text: Article 1. Territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army.

text: The occupation extends only to the territory where such authority has been established and can be exercised.

text: Article 1

text: Art. 2. The authority of the legitimate Power being suspended and having in fact passed into the hands of the occupants, the latter shall take all the measures in his power to restore and ensure, as far as possible, public order and safety.

text: Article 2

text: Art. 3. With this object he shall maintain the laws which were in force in the country in time of peace, and shall not modify, suspend or replace them unless necessary.

text: Article 3

text: Art. 4. The functionaries and employees of every class who consent, on his invitation, to continue their functions, shall enjoy his protection. They shall not be dismissed or subjected to disciplinary punishment unless they fall in fulfilling the obligations undertaken by them, and they shall not be prosecuted unless they betray their trust.

text: Article 4

text: Art. 5. The army of occupation shall only collect the taxes, dues, duties, and tolls imposed for the benefit of the State, or their equivalent, if it is impossible to collect them, and, as far as is possible, in accordance with the existing forms and practice. It shall devote them to defraying the expenses of the administration of the country to the same extent as the legitimate Government was so obligated.

text: Article 5

text: Art. 6. An army of occupation can only take possession of cash, funds, and realizable securities which are strictly the property of the State, depots of arms, means of transport, stores and supplies, and generally, all movable property belonging to the State which may be used for the operations of the war.

text: Railway plant, land telegraphs, steamers and other ships, apart from cases governed by maritime law, as well as depots of arms and, generally, all kinds of war material, even if belonging to companies or to private persons, are likewise material which may serve for military operations and which cannot be left by the army of occupation at the disposal of the enemy. Railway plant, land telegraphs, as well as steamers and other ships above mentioned shall be restored and compensation fixed when peace is made.

text: Article 6

text: Art. 7. The occupying State shall be regarded only as administrator and usufructuary of public buildings, real estate, forests, and agricultural estates belonging to the hostile State, and situated in the occupied country. It must safeguard the capital of these properties, and administer them in accordance with the rules of usufruct.

text: Article 7

text: Art. 8. The property of municipalities, that of institutions dedicated to religion, charity and education, the arts and sciences even when State property, shall be treated as private property.

text: All seizure or destruction of, or wilful damage to, institutions of this character, historic monuments, works of art and science should be made the subject of legal proceedings by the competent authorities.

text: Article 8

text: Art. 9. The laws, rights, and duties of war apply not only to armies, but also to militia and volunteer corps fulfilling the following conditions:

text: 1. That they be commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates;

text: 2. That they have a fixed distinctive emblem recognizable at a distance;

text: 3. That they carry arms openly; and

text: 4. That they conduct their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.

text: In countries where militia constitute the army, or form part of it, they are included under the denomination ' army '.

text: Article 9

text: Art. 10. The population of a territory which has not been occupied, who, on the approach of the enemy, spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading troops without having had time to organize themselves in accordance with Article 9 , shall be regarded as belligerents if they respect the laws and customs of war.

text: Article 10

text: Art 11. The armed forces of the belligerent parties may consist of combatants and non-combatants. In case of capture by the enemy, both shall enjoy the rights of prisoners of war.

text: Article 11

text: Art. 12. The laws of war do not recognize in belligerents an unlimited power in the adoption of means of injuring the enemy.

text: Article 12

text: Art. 13. According to this principle are especially ' forbidden ':

text: (a) Employment of poison or poisoned weapons;

text: (b) Murder by treachery of individuals belonging to the hostile nation or army;

text: (c) Murder of an enemy who, having laid down his arms or having no longer means of defense, has surrendered at discretion;

text: (d) The declaration that no quarter will be given;

text: (e) The employment of arms, projectiles or material calculated to cause unnecessary suffering, as well as the use of projectiles prohibited by the Declaration of St. Petersburg of 1868;

text: (f) Making improper use of a flag of truce, of the national flag or of the military insignia and uniform of the enemy, as well as the distinctive badges of the Geneva Convention;

text: (g) Any destruction or seizure of the enemy's property that is not imperatively demanded by the necessity of war.

text: Article 13

text: Art. 14. Ruses of war and the employment of measures necessary for obtaining information about the enemy and the country (excepting the provisions of Article 36 ) are considered permissible.

text: Article 14

text: Art. 15. Fortified places are alone liable to be besieged. Open towns, agglomerations of dwellings, or villages which are not defended can neither be attacked nor bombarded.

text: Article 15

text: Art. 16. But if a town or fortress, agglomeration of dwellings, or village, is defended, the officer in command of an attacking force must, before commencing a bombardment, except in assault, do all in his power to warn the authorities.

text: Article 16

text: Art. 17. In such cases all necessary steps must be taken to spare, as far as possible, buildings dedicated to art, science, or charitable purposes, hospitals, and places where the sick and wounded are collected provided they are not being used at the time for military purposes.

text: It is the duty of the besieged to indicate the presence of such buildings by distinctive and visible signs to be communicated to the enemy beforehand

text: Article 17

text: Art. 18. A town taken by assault ought not to be given over to pillage by the victorious troops.

text: Article 18

text: Art. 19. A person can only be considered a spy when acting clandestinely or on false pretenses he obtains or endeavours to obtain information in the districts occupied by the enemy, with the intention of communicating it to the hostile party.

text: Article 19

text: Art. 20. A spy taken in the act shall be tried and treated according to the laws in force in the army which captures him.

text: Article 20

text: Art. 21. A spy who rejoins the army to which he belongs and who is subsequently captured by the enemy is treated as a prisoner of war and incurs no responsibility for his previous acts.

text: Article 21

text: Art. 22. Soldiers not wearing a disguise who have penetrated into the zone of operations of the hostile army, for the purpose of obtaining information, are not considered spies.

text: Similarly, the following should not be considered spies, if they are captured by the enemy: soldiers (and also civilians, carrying out their mission openly) entrusted with the delivery of dispatches intended either for their own army or for the enemy's army.

text: To this class belong likewise, if they are captured, persons sent in balloons for the purpose of carrying dispatches and, generally, of maintaining communications between the different parts of an army or a territory.

text: Article 22

text: Art. 23. Prisoners of war are lawful and disarmed enemies.

text: They are in the power of the hostile Government, but not in that of the individuals or corps who captured them.

text: They must be humanely treated.

text: Any act of insubordination justifies the adoption of such measures of severity as may be necessary. All their personal belongings except arms shall remain their property.

text: Article 23

text: Art. 24. Prisoners of war may be interned in a town, fortress, camp, or other place, under obligation not to go beyond certain fixed limits; but they can only be placed in confinement as an indispensable measure of safety.

text: Article 24

text: Art. 25. Prisoners of war may be employed on certain public works which have no direct connection with the operations in the theatre of war and which are not excessive or humiliating to their military rank, if they belong to the army, or to their official or social position, if they do not belong to it.

text: They may also, subject to such regulations as may be drawn up by the military authorities, undertake private work.

text: Their wages shall go towards improving their position or shall be paid to them on their release. In this case the cost of maintenance may be deducted from said wages.

text: Article 25

text: Art. 26. Prisoners of war cannot be compelled in any way to take any part whatever in carrying on the operations of the war.

text: Article 26

text: Art. 27. The Government into whose hands prisoners of war have fallen charges itself with their maintenance.

text: The conditions of such maintenance may be settled by a reciprocal agreement between the belligerent parties.

text: In the absence of this agreement, and as a general principle, prisoners of war shall be treated as regards food and clothing, on the same footing as the troops of the Government which captured them.

text: Article 27

text: Art. 28. Prisoners of war are subject to the laws and regulations in force in the army in whose power they are.

text: Arms may be used, after summoning, against a prisoner of war attempting to escape. If recaptured he is liable to disciplinary punishment or subject to a stricter surveillance.

text: If, after succeeding in escaping, he is again taken prisoner, he is not liable to punishment for his previous acts.

text: Article 28

text: Art. 29. Every prisoner of war is bound to give, if questioned on the subject, his true name and rank, and if he infringes this rule, he is liable to a curtailment of the advantages accorded to the prisoners of war of his class.

text: Article 29

text: Art. 30. The exchange of prisoners of war is regulated by a mutual understanding between the belligerent parties.

text: Article 30

text: Art. 31. Prisoners of war may be set at liberty on parole if the laws of their country allow it, and, in such cases, they are bound, on their personal honour, scrupulously to fulfill, both towards their own Government and the Government by which they were made prisoners, the engagements they have contracted.

text: In such cases their own Government ought neither to require of nor accept from them any service incompatible with the parole given.

text: Article 31

text: Art. 32. A prisoner of war cannot be compelled to accept his liberty on parole; similarly the hostile Government is not obliged to accede to the request of the prisoner to be set at liberty on parole.

text: Article 32

text: Art. 33. Any prisoner of war liberated on parole and recaptured bearing arms against the Government to which he had pledged his honour may be deprived of the rights accorded to prisoners of war and brought before the courts.

text: Article 33

text: Art. 34. Individuals in the vicinity of armies but not directly forming part of them, such as correspondents, newspaper reporters, sutlers, contractors, etc., can also be made prisoners. These prisoners should however be in possession of a permit issued by the competent authority and of a certificate of identity.

text: Article 34

text: Art. 35. The obligations of belligerents with respect to the service of the sick and wounded are governed by the Geneva Convention of 22 August 1864, save such modifications as the latter may undergo.

text: Article 35

text: Art. 36. The population of occupied territory cannot be forced to take part in military operations against its own country.

text: Article 36

text: Art. 37. The population of occupied territory cannot be compelled to swear allegiance to the hostile Power.

text: Article 37

text: Art. 38. Family honour and rights, and the lives and property of persons, as well as their religious convictions and their practice, must be respected.

text: Private property cannot be confiscated.

text: Article 38

text: Art. 39. Pillage is formally forbidden.

text: Article 39

text: Art. 40. As private property should be respected, the enemy will demand from communes or inhabitants only such payments and services as are connected with the generally recognized necessities of war, in proportion to the resources of the country, and not implying, with regard to the inhabitants, the obligation of taking part in operations of war against their country.

text: Article 40

text: Art. 41. The enemy in levying contributions, whether as an equivalent for taxes (see Article 5 ) or for payments that should be made in kind, or as fines, shall proceed, so far as possible, only in accordance with the rules for incidence and assessment in force in the territory occupied.

text: The civil authorities of the legitimate Government shall lend it their assistance if they have remained at their posts.

text: Contributions shall be imposed only on the order and on the responsibility of the commander in chief or the superior civil authority established by the enemy in the occupied territory.

text: For every contribution, a receipt shall be given to the person furnishing it.

text: Article 41

text: Art. 42. Requisitions shall be made only with the authorization of the commander in the territory occupied.

text: For every requisition indemnity shall be granted or a receipt delivered.

text: Article 42

text: Art. 43. A person is regarded as a parlementaire who has been authorized by one of the belligerents to enter into communication with the other, and who advances bearing a white flag, accompanied by a trumpeter (bugler or drummer) or also by a flag-bearer. He shall have a right to inviolability as well as the trumpeter (bugler or drummer) and the flag-bearer who accompany him.

text: Article 43

text: Art. 44. The commander to whom a parlementaire is sent is not in all cases and under all conditions obliged to receive him.

text: It is lawful for him to take all the necessary steps to prevent the parlementaire taking advantage of his stay within the radius of the enemy's position to the prejudice of the latter, and if the parlementaire has rendered himself guilty of such an abuse of confidence, he has the right to detain him temporarily.

text: He may likewise declare beforehand that he will not receive parlementaires during a certain period. Parlementaires presenting themselves after such a notification, from the side to which it has been given, forfeit the right of inviolability.

text: Article 44

text: Art. 45. The parlementaire loses his rights of inviolability if it is proved in a clear and incontestable manner that he has taken advantage of his privileged position to provoke or commit an act of treason.

text: Article 45

text: Art. 46. The conditions of capitulations are discussed between the Contracting Parties.

text: They must not be contrary to military honour.

text: Once settled by a convention, they must be scrupulously observed by both parties.

text: Article 46

text: Art. 47. An armistice suspends military operations by mutual agreement, between the belligerent parties. If its duration is not defined, the belligerent parties may resume operations at any time, provided always that the enemy is warned within the time agreed upon, in accordance with the terms of the armistice.

text: Article 47

text: Art. 48. The armistice may be general or local. The first suspends the military operations of the belligerent States everywhere; the second only between certain fractions of the belligerent armies and within a fixed radius.

text: Article 48

text: Art. 49. An armistice must be officially and without delay notified to the competent authorities and to the troops. Hostilities are suspended immediately after the notification.

text: Article 49

text: Art. 50. It rests with the Contracting Parties to settle, in the terms of the armistice, what communications may be held between the populations.

text: Article 50

text: Art. 51. The violation of the armistice by one of the parties gives the other party the right of denouncing it.

text: Article 51

text: Art. 52. A violation of the terms of the armistice by individuals acting on their own initiative only entitles the injured party to demand the punishment of the offenders or, if necessary, compensation for the losses sustained.

text: Article 52

text: Art. 53. A neutral State which receives on its territory troops belonging to the belligerent armies shall intern them, as far as possible, at a distance from the theatre of war.

text: It may keep them in camps and even confine them in fortresses or in places set apart for this purpose.

text: It shall decide whether officers can be left at liberty on giving their parole not to leave the neutral territory without permission.

text: Article 53

text: Art. 54. In the absence of a special convention, the neutral State shall supply the interned with the food, clothing and relief required by humanity.

text: At the conclusion of peace the expenses caused by the internment shall be made good.

text: Article 54

text: Art. 55. A neutral State may authorize the passage through its territory of the wounded or sick belonging to the belligerent armies, on condition that the trains bringing them shall carry neither personnel nor material of war.

text: In such a case, the neutral State is bound to take whatever measures of safety and control are necessary for the purpose.

text: Article 55

text: Art. 56. The Geneva Convention applies to sick and wounded interned in neutral territory.

text: Article 56

summary: On the initiative of Czar Alexander II of Russia the delegates of 15 European States met in Brussels on 27 July 1874 to examine the draft of an international agreement concerning the laws and customs of war submitted to them by the Russian Government. The Conference adopted the draft with minor alterations. However, since not all the governments were willing to accept it as a binding convention it was not ratified. The project nevertheless formed an important step in the movement for the codification of the laws of war. In the year in which it was adopted, the Institute of International Law, at its session in Geneva, appointed a committee to study the Brussels Declaration and to submit to the Institute its opinion and supplementary proposals on the subject. The efforts of the Institute led to the adoption of the Manual of the Laws and Customs of War at Oxford in 1880. Both the Brussels Declaration and the Oxford Manual formed the basis of the two Hague Conventions on land warfare and the Regulations annexed to them, adopted in 1899 and 1907. Many of the provisions of the two Hague Conventions can easily be traced back to the Brussels Declaration and the Oxford Manual.


doctype: treaty

identifier: Oxford Manual, 1880

publisher: International Committee of the Red Cross

reference: Oxford Manual, 1880

title: The Laws of War on Land. Oxford, 9 September 1880.

text: War holds a great place in history, and it is not to be supposed that men will soon give it up -- in spite of the protests which it arouses and the horror which it inspires -- because it appears to be the only possible issue of disputes which threaten the existence of States, their liberty, their vital interests. But the gradual improvement in customs should be reflected in the method of conducting war. It is worthy of civilized nations to seek, as has been well said (Baron Jomini), "to restrain the destructive force of war, while recognizing its inexorable necessities".

type: stycke

text: This problem is not easy of solution; however, some points have already been solved, and very recently the draft of Declaration of Brussels has been a solemn pronouncement of the good intentions of governments in this connection. It may be said that independently of the international laws existing on this subject, there are to-day certain principles of justice which guide the public conscience, which are manifested even by general customs, but which it would be well to fix and make obligatory. That is what the Conference of Brussels attempted, at the suggestion of His Majesty the Emperor of Russia, and it is what the Institute of International Law, in its turn, is trying to-day to contribute. The Institute attempts this although the governments have not ratified the draft issued by the Conference at Brussels, because since 1874 ideas, aided by reflection and experience, have had time to mature, and because it seems less difficult than it did then to trace rules which would be acceptable to all peoples.

text: The Institute, too, does not propose an international treaty, which might perhaps be premature or at least very difficult to obtain; but, being bound by its by-laws to work, among other things, for the observation of the laws of war, it believes it is fulfilling a duty in offering to the governments a ' Manual ' suitable as the basis for national legislation in each State, and in accord with both the progress of juridical science and the needs of civilized armies.

text: Rash and extreme rules will not, furthermore, be found therein. The Institute has not sought innovations in drawing up the ' Manual '; it has contented itself with stating clearly and codifying the accepted ideas of our age so far as this has appeared allowable and practicable.

text: By so doing, it believes it is rendering a service to military men themselves. In fact so long as the demands of opinion remain indeterminate, belligerents are exposed to painful uncertainty and to endless accusations. A positive set of rules, on the contrary, if they are judicious, serves the interests of belligerents and is far from hindering them, since by preventing the unchaining of passion and savage instincts -- which battle always awakens, as much as it awakens courage and manly virtues, -- it strengthens the discipline which is the strength of armies; it also ennobles their patriotic mission in the eyes of the soldiers by keeping them within the limits of respect due to the rights of humanity.

text: But in order to attain this end it is not sufficient for sovereigns to promulgate new laws. It is essential, too, that they make these laws known among all people, so that when a war is declared, the men called upon to take up arms to defend the causes of the belligerent States, may be thoroughly impregnated with the special rights and duties attached to the execution of such a command.

text: The Institute, with a view to assisting the authorities in accomplishing this part of their task, has given its work a popular form, attaching thereto statements of the reasons therefor, from which the text of a law may be easily secured when desired.

text: Preface

type: artikel

text: Article 1. The state of war does not admit of acts of violence, save between the armed forces of belligerent States.

text: Persons not forming part of a belligerent armed force should abstain from such acts.

text: ' This rule implies a distinction between the individuals who compose the "armed force" of a

text: State and its other ' ressortissants '. A definition of the term "armed force" is, therefore, necessary. '

text: Article 1

text: Art. 2. The armed force of a State includes:

text: 1. The army properly so called, including the militia;

text: 2. The national guards, landsturm, free corps, and other bodies which fulfil the three following conditions:

text: (a) That they are under the direction of a responsible chief;

text: (b) That they must have a uniform, or a fixed distinctive emblem recognizable at a distance, and worn by individuals composing such corps;

text: (c) That they carry arms openly;

text: 3. The crews of men-of-war and other military boats;

text: 4. The inhabitants of non-occupied territory, who, on the approach of the enemy, take up arms spontaneously and openly to resist the invading troops, even if they have not had time to organize themselves.

text: Article 2

text: Art. 3. Every belligerent armed force is bound to conform to the laws of war.

text: ' The only legitimate end that States may have in war being to weaken the military strength of the enemy ' (Declaration of St. Petersburg, 1868), ' '

text: Article 3

text: Art. 4. The laws of war do not recognize in belligerents an unlimited liberty as to the means of injuring the enemy.

text: They are to abstain especially from all needless severity, as well as from all perfidious, unjust, or tyrannical acts.

text: Article 4

text: Art. 5. Military conventions made between belligerents during the continuance of war, such as armistices and capitulations, must be scrupulously observed and respected.

text: Article 5

text: Art. 6. No invaded territory is regarded as conquered until the end of the war; until that time the occupant exercises, in such territory, only a ' de facto ' power, essentially provisional in character.

text: Article 6

text: ' The contest being carried on by "armed forces" only (Article 1 ), '

text: Art. 7. It is forbidden to maltreat inoffensive populations.

text: Article 7

text: ' As the struggle must be honourable (Article 4 ), '

text: Art. 8. It is forbidden:

text: (a) To make use of poison, in any form whatever;

text: (b) To make treacherous attempts upon the life of an enemy; as, for example, by keeping assassins in pay or by feigning to surrender;

text: (c) To attack an enemy while concealing the distinctive signs of an armed force;

text: (d) To make improper use of the national flag, military insignia or uniform of the enemy, of the flag of truce and of the protective signs prescribed by the ' Geneva Convention ' (Articles 17 and 40 ).

text: Article 8

text: ' As needless severity should be avoided (Article 4 ), '

text: Art. 9. It is forbidden:

text: (a) To employ arms, projectiles, or materials of any kind calculated to cause superfluous suffering, or to aggravate wounds - notably projectiles of less weight than four hundred grams which are explosive or are charged with fulminating or inflammable substances ' (Declaration of St. Petersburg); '

text: (b) To injure or kill an enemy who has surrendered at discretion or is disabled, and to declare in advance that quarter will not be given, even by those who do not ask it for themselves.

text: Article 9

text: ' The following provisions (Articles 10 to18), drawn from the ' Geneva Convention, ' exempt

text: the sick and wounded, and the personnel of the sanitary service, from many of the needless

text: hardships to which they were formerly exposed: '

text: Art. 10. Wounded or sick soldiers should be brought in and cared for, to whatever nation they belong.

text: Article 10

text: Art. 11. Commanders in chief have power to deliver immediately to the enemy outposts hostile soldiers who have been wounded in an engagement, when circumstances permit and with the consent of both parties.

text: Article 11

text: Art. 12. Evacuations, together with the persons under whose direction they take place, shall be protected by neutrality.

text: Article 12

text: Art. 13. Persons employed in hospitals and ambulances -- including the staff for superintendence, medical service, administration and transport of wounded, as well as the chaplains, and the members and agents of relief associations which are duly authorized to assist the regular sanitary staff -- are considered as neutral while so employed, and so long as there remain any wounded to bring in or to succour.

text: Article 13

text: Art. 14. The personnel designated in the preceding article should continue, after occupation by the enemy, to tend, according to their needs, the sick and wounded in the ambulance or hospital which it serves.

text: Article 14

text: Art. 15. When such personnel requests to withdraw, the commander of the occupying troops sets the time of departure, which however he can only delay for a short time in case of military necessity.

text: Article 15

text: Art. 16. Measures should be taken to assure, if possible, to neutralized persons who have fallen into the hands of the enemy, the enjoyment of fitting maintenance.

text: Article 16

text: Art. 17. The neutralized sanitary staff should wear a white arm-badge with a red cross, but the delivery thereof belongs exclusively to the military authority.

text: Article 17

text: Art. 18. The generals of the belligerent Powers should appeal to the humanity of the inhabitants, and should endeavour to induce them to assist the wounded by pointing out to them the advantages that will result to themselves from so doing (Articles 36 and 59 ). They should regard as inviolable those who respond to this appeal.

text: Article 18

text: Art. 19. It is forbidden to rob or mutilate the dead lying on the field of battle.

text: Article 19

text: Art. 20. The dead should never be buried until all articles on them which may serve to fix their identity, such as pocket-books, numbers, etc., shall have been collected.

text: The articles thus collected from the dead of the enemy are transmitted to its army or government.

text: Article 20

text: Art. 21. Individuals who form a part of the belligerent armed force, if they fall into the hands of the enemy, are to be treated as prisoners of war, in conformity with Articles 61 et seq.

text: The same rule applies to messengers openly carrying official dispatches, and to civil aeronauts charged with observing the enemy, or with the maintenance of communications between the various parts of the army or territory.

text: Article 21

text: Art. 22. Individuals who accompany an army, but who are not a part of the regular armed force of the State, such as correspondents, traders, sutlers, etc., and who fall into the hands of the enemy, may be detained for such length of time only as is warranted by strict military necessity.

text: Article 22

text: Art. 23. Individuals captured as spies cannot demand to be treated as prisoners of war.

text: ' But '

text: [See article 24 ]

text: Article 23

text: Art. 24. Individuals may not be regarded as spies, who, belonging to the armed force of either belligerent, have penetrated, without disguise, into the zone of operations of the enemy, -- nor bearers of official dispatches, carrying out their mission openly, nor aeronauts (Article 21 ).

text: Article 24

text: ' In order to avoid the abuses to which accusations of espionage too often give rise in

text: war it is important to assert emphatically that '

text: Art. 25. No person charged with espionage shall be punished until the judicial authority shall have pronounced judgment.

text: ' Moreover, it is admitted that '

text: [See article 26 ]

text: Article 25

text: Art. 26. A spy who succeeds in quitting the territory occupied by the enemy incurs no responsibility for his previous acts, should he afterwards fall into the hands of that enemy.

text: Article 26

text: Art. 27. A person is regarded as a parlementaire and has a right to inviolability who has been authorized by one of the belligerents to enter into communication with the other, and who advances bearing a white flag.

text: Article 27

text: Art. 28. He may be accompanied by a bugler or a drummer, by a colour-bearer, and, if need be, by a guide and interpreter, who also are entitled to inviolability.

text: ' The necessity of this prerogative is evident. It is moreover, frequently exercised in the interest of humanity.

text: But it must not be injurious to the adverse party. This is why '

text: [See article 29 ]

text: Article 28

text: Art. 29. The commander to whom a parlementaire is sent is not in all cases obliged to receive him.

text: ' Besides, '

text: [See article 30 ]

text: Article 29

text: Art. 30. The commander who receives a parlementaire has a right to take all the necessary steps to prevent the presence of the enemy within his lines from being prejudicial to him.

text: Article 30

text: ' The parlementaire and those who accompany him should behave fairly towards the enemy

text: receiving them (Article 4 ). '

text: Art. 31. If a parlementaire abuse the trust reposed in him he may be temporarily detained, and, if it be proved that he has taken advantage of his privileged position to abet a treasonable act, he forfeits his right to inviolability.

text: Article 31

text: ' Certain precautions are made necessary by the rule that a belligerent must abstain from

text: useless severity (Article 4 ). In accordance with this principle '

text: Art. 32. It is forbidden:

text: (a) To pillage, even towns taken by assault;

text: (b) To destroy public or private property, if this destruction is not demanded by an imperative necessity of war;

text: (c) To attack and to bombard undefended places.

text: Article 32

text: ' If it is incontestable that belligerents have the right to resort to bombardment against fortresses and other places in which the enemy is intrenched, considerations of humanity require that this means of coercion be surrounded with certain modifying influences which will restrict as far as possible the effects to the hostile armed force and its means of defense. This is why '

text: Art. 33. The commander of an attacking force, save in cases of open assault, shall, before undertaking a bombardment, make every due effort to give notice thereof to the local authorities.

text: Article 33

text: Art. 34. In case of bombardment all necessary steps must be taken to spare, if it can be done, buildings dedicated to religion, art, science and charitable purposes, hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are gathered on the condition that they are not being utilized at the time, directly or indirectly, for defense.

text: It is the duty of the besieged to indicate the presence of such buildings by visible signs notified to the assailant beforehand.

text: Article 34

text: ' The arrangements for the relief of the wounded, which are made the subject of Articles 10 let seq., would be inadequate were not sanitary establishments also granted special protection. Hence, in accordance with the ' Geneva Convention, ' '

text: Art. 35. Ambulances and hospitals for the use of armies are recognized as neutral and should, as such, be protected and respected by belligerents, so long as any sick or wounded are therein.

text: Article 35

text: Art. 36. The same rule applies to private buildings, or parts of buildings, in which sick or wounded are gathered and cared for.

text: ' Nevertheless, '

text: [See article 37 ]

text: Article 36

text: Art. 37. The neutrality of hospitals and ambulances ceases if they are guarded by a military force; this does not preclude the presence of police guard.

text: Article 37

text: Art. 38. As the equipment of military hospitals remains subject to the laws of war, persons attached to such hospitals cannot, in withdrawing, carry away any articles but such as are their private property. Ambulances, on the contrary, retain all their equipment.

text: Article 38

text: Art. 39. In the circumstances referred to in the above paragraph, the term "ambulance" is applied to field hospitals and other temporary establishments which follow the troops on the field of battle to receive the sick and wounded.

text: Article 39

text: Art. 40. A distinctive and uniform flag is adopted for ambulances, hospitals, and evacuations. It bears a red cross on a white ground It must always be accompanied by the national flag.

text: Article 40

text: Art. 41. Territory is regarded as occupied when, as the consequence of invasion by hostile forces, the State to which it belongs has ceased, in fact, to exercise its ordinary authority therein, and the invading State is alone in a position to maintain order there. The limits within which this state of affairs exists determine the extent and duration of the occupation.

text: Article 41

text: ' In consideration of the new relations which arise from the provisional change of government (Article 6 ), '

text: Art. 42. It is the duty of the occupying military authority to inform the inhabitants at the earliest practicable moment, of the powers that it exercises, as well as of the local extent of the occupation.

text: Article 42

text: Art. 43. The occupant should take all due and needful measures to restore and ensure public order and public safety.

text: ' To that end '

text: [See article 44 ]

text: Article 43

text: Art. 44. The occupant should maintain the laws which were in force in the country in time of peace, and should not modify, suspend, or replace them, unless necessary.

text: Article 44

text: Art. 45. The civil functionaries and employees of every class who consent to continue to perform their duties are under the protection of the occupant.

text: They may always be dismissed, and they always have the right to resign their places.

text: They should not be summarily punished unless they fail to fulfil obligations accepted by them, and should be handed over to justice only if they violate these obligations.

text: Article 45

text: Art. 46. In case of urgency, the occupant may demand the cooperation of the inhabitants, in order to provide for the necessities of local administration.

text: Article 46

text: ' As occupation does not entail upon the inhabitants a change of nationality, '

text: Art. 47. The population of the invaded district cannot be compelled to swear allegiance to the hostile Power; but inhabitants who commit acts of hostility against the occupant are punishable (Article 1 ).

text: Article 47

text: Art. 48. The inhabitants of an occupied territory who do not submit to the orders of the occupant may be compelled to do so.

text: The occupant, however, cannot compel the inhabitants to assist him in his works of attack or defense, or to take part in military operations against their own country (Article 4 ).

text: ' Besides, '

text: [See article 49 ]

text: Article 48

text: Art. 49. Family honour and rights, the lives of individuals, as well as their religious convictions and practice, must be respected (Article 4 ).

text: Article 49

text: ' Although the occupant replaces the enemy State in the government of the invaded territory, his power is not absolute. So long as the fate of this territory remains in suspense -- that is, until peace -- the occupant is not free to dispose of what still belongs to the enemy and is not of use in military operation. Hence the following rules: '

text: Art. 50. The occupant can only take possession of cash, funds and realizable or negotiable securities which are strictly the property of the State, depots of arms, supplies, and, in general, movable property of the State of such character as to be useful in military operations.

text: Article 50

text: Art. 51. Means of transportation (railways, boats, & c.), as well as land telegraphs and landing-cables, can only be appropriated to the use of the occupant. Their destruction is forbidden, unless it be demanded by military necessity. They are restored when peace is made in the condition in which they then are.

text: Article 51

text: Art. 52. The occupant can only act in the capacity of provisional administrator in respect to real property, such as buildings, forests, agricultural establishments, belonging to the enemy State (Article 6 ).

text: It must safeguard the capital of these properties and see to their maintenance.

text: Article 52

text: Art. 53. The property of municipalities, and that of institutions devoted to religion, charity, education, art and science, cannot be seized.

text: All destruction or wilful damage to institutions of this character, historic monuments, archives, Works of art, or science, is formally forbidden, save when urgently demanded by military necessity.

text: Article 53

text: ' If the powers of the occupant are limited with respect to the property of the enemy State, with greater reason are they limited with respect to the property of individuals. '

text: Art. 54. Private property, whether belonging to individuals or corporations, must be respected, and can be confiscated only under the limitations contained in the following articles [ Link ] .

text: Article 54

text: Art. 55. Means of transportation (railways, boats, & c.), telegraphs, depots of arms and munitions of war, although belonging to companies or to individuals, may be seized by the occupant, but must be restored, if possible, and compensation fixed when peace is made.

text: Article 55

text: Art. 56. Impositions in kind (requisitions) demanded from communes or inhabitants should be in proportion to the necessities of war as generally recognized, and in proportion to the resources of the country.

text: Requisitions can only be made on the authority of the commander in the locality occupied.

text: Article 56

text: Art. 57. The occupant may collect, in the way of dues and taxes, only those already established for the benefit of the State. He employs them to defray the expenses of administration of the country, to the extent in which the legitimate government was bound.

text: Article 57

text: Art. 58. The occupant cannot collect extraordinary contributions of money, save as an equivalent for fines, or imposts not paid, or for payments not made in kind.

text: Contributions in money can be imposed only on the order and responsibility of the general in chief, or of the superior civil authority established in the occupied territory, as far as possible, in accordance with the rules of assessment and incidence of the taxes in force.

text: Article 58

text: Art. 59. In the apportionment of burdens relating to the quartering of troops and war contributions, account is taken of the charitable zeal displayed by the inhabitants in behalf of the wounded.

text: Article 59

text: Art. 60. Requisitioned articles, when they are not paid for in cash, and war contributions are evidenced by receipts. Measures should be taken to assure the ' bona fide ' character and regularity of these receipts.

text: Article 60

text: ' The confinement of prisoners of war is not in the nature of a penalty for crime (Article 21 ): neither is it an act of vengeance. It is a temporary detention only, entirely without penal character.

text: In the following provisions, therefore, regard has been had to the consideration due them as prisoners, and to the necessity of their secure detention. '

text: Art. 61. Prisoners of war are in the power of the hostile government, but not in that of the individuals or corps who captured them.

text: Article 61

text: Art. 62. They are subject to the laws and regulations in force in the army of the enemy.

text: Article 62

text: Art. 63. They must be humanely treated.

text: Article 63

text: Art. 64. All their personal belongings, except arms, remain their property.

text: Article 64

text: Art. 65. Every prisoner is bound to give, if questioned on the subject, his true name and rank. Should he fail to do so, he may be deprived of all, or a part, of the advantages accorded to prisoners of his class.

text: Article 65

text: Art. 66. Prisoners may be interned in a town, a fortress, a camp, or other place, under obligation not to go beyond certain fixed limits; but they may only be placed in confinement as an indispensable measure of safety.

text: Article 66

text: Art. 67. Any act of insubordination justifies the adoption towards them of such measure of severity as may be necessary.

text: Article 67

text: Art. 68. Arms may be used, after summoning, against a prisoner attempting to escape.

text: If he is recaptured before being able to rejoin his own army or to quit the territory of his captor, he is only liable to disciplinary punishment, or subject to a stricter surveillance.

text: But if, after succeeding in escaping, he is again captured, he is not liable to punishment for his previous flight.

text: If, however, the fugitive so recaptured or retaken has given his parole not to escape, he may be deprived of the rights of a prisoner of war.

text: Article 68

text: Art. 69. The government into whose hands prisoners have fallen is charged with their maintenance.

text: In the absence of an agreement on this point between the belligerent parties, prisoners are treated, as regards food and clothing, on the same peace footing as the troops of the government which captured them.

text: Article 69

text: Art. 70. Prisoners cannot be compelled in any manner to take any part whatever in the operations of war, nor compelled to give information about their country or their army.

text: Article 70

text: Art. 71. They may be employed on public works which have no direct connection with the operations in the theatre of war, which are not excessive and are not humiliating either to their military rank, if they belong to the army, or to their official or social position, if they do not form part thereof.

text: Article 71

text: Art. 72. In case of their being authorized to engage in private industries, their pay for such services may be collected by the authority in charge of them. The sums so received may be employed in bettering their condition, or may be paid to them on their release, subject to deduction, if that course be deemed expedient, of the expense of their maintenance.

text: Article 72

text: ' The reasons justifying detention of the captured enemy exist only during the continuance of the war. '

text: Art. 73. The captivity of prisoners of war ceases, as a matter of right, at the conclusion of peace; but their liberation is then regulated by agreement between the belligerents.

text: Article 73

text: ' Before that time, and by virtue of the ' Geneva Convention, ' '

text: Art. 74. It also ceases as of right for wounded or sick prisoners who, after being cured, are found to be unfit for further military service. The captor should then send them back to their country.

text: Article 74

text: ' During the war '

text: Art. 75. Prisoners of war may be released in accordance with a cartel of exchange, agreed upon by the belligerent parties.

text: Article 75

text: ' Even without exchange '

text: Art. 76. Prisoners may be set at liberty on parole, if the laws of their country do not forbid it.

text: In this case they are bound, on their personal honour, scrupulously to fulfil the engagements which they have freely contracted, and which should be clearly specified. On its part, their own government should not demand or accept from them any service incompatible with the parole given.

text: Article 76

text: Art. 77. A prisoner cannot be compelled to accept his liberty on parole. Similarly, the hostile government is not obliged to accede to the request of a prisoner to be set at liberty on parole.

text: Article 77

text: Art. 78. Any prisoner liberated on parole and recaptured bearing arms against the government to which he had given such parole may be deprived of his rights as a prisoner of war, unless since his liberation he has been included in an unconditional exchange of prisoners.

text: Article 78

text: ' It is universally admitted that a neutral State cannot, without compromising its neutrality,

text: lend aid to either belligerent, or permit them to make use of its territory. On the other hand,

text: considerations of humanity dictate that asylum should not be refused to individuals who take

text: refuge in neutral territory to escape death or captivity. Hence the following provisions,

text: calculated to reconcile the opposing interests involved. '

text: Art. 79. A neutral State on whose territory troops or individuals belonging to the armed forces of the belligerents take refuge should intern them, as far as possible, at a distance from the theatre of war.

text: It should do the same towards those who make use of its territory for military operations or services.

text: Article 79

text: Art. 80. The interned may be kept in camps or even confined in fortresses or other places.

text: The neutral State decides whether officers can be left at liberty on parole by taking an engagement not to leave the neutral territory without permission.

text: Article 80

text: Art. 81. In the absence of a special convention concerning the maintenance of the interned, the neutral State supplies them with the food, clothing, and relief required by humanity.

text: It also takes care of the ' matériel ' brought in by the interned.

text: When peace has been concluded, or sooner if possible, the expenses caused by the internment are repaid to the neutral State by the belligerent State to which the interned belong.

text: Article 81

text: Art. 82. The provisions of the ' Geneva Convention ' of 22 August 1864 (Articles 10 -18, 35 -40, 59 and 74 above given), are applicable to the sanitary staff, as well as to the sick and wounded, who take refuge in, or are conveyed to, neutral territory.

text: ' In particular, '

text: [See article 83 ]

text: Article 82

text: Art. 83. Evacuations of wounded and sick not prisoners may pass through neutral territory, provided the personnel and material accompanying them are exclusively sanitary. The neutral State through whose territory these evacuations are made is bound to take whatever measures of safety and control are necessary to secure the strict observance of the above conditions.

text: Article 83

text: ' If any of the foregoing rules be violated, the offending parties should be punished, after a

text: judicial hearing, by the belligerent in whose hands they are. Therefore '

text: Art. 84. Offenders against the laws of war are liable to the punishments specified in the penal law.' This mode of repression, however, is only applicable when the person of the offender can be secured. In the contrary case, the criminal law is powerless, and, if the injured party deem the misdeed so serious in character as to make it necessary to recall the enemy to a respect for law, no other recourse than a resort to reprisals remains.

text: Reprisals are an exception to the general rule of equity, that an innocent person ought not to suffer for the guilty. They are also at variance with the rule that each belligerent should conform to the rules of war, without reciprocity on the part of the enemy. This necessary rigour, however, is modified to some extent by the following restrictions: '

text: [See article 85 ]

text: Article 84

text: Art. 85. Reprisals are formally prohibited in case the injury complained of has been repaired.

text: Article 85

text: Art. 86. In grave cases in which reprisals appear to be absolutely necessary, their nature and scope shall never exceed the measure of the infraction of the laws of war committed by the enemy.

text: They can only be resorted to with the authorization of the commander in chief.

text: They must conform in all cases to the laws of humanity and morality.

text: Article 86

summary: The Institute of International Law, founded in 1873, is a scientific association composed of a fixed number of members and associates of different nations. Its object is to aid the growth of international law by endeavouring to state the general principles of the science of international law and by giving assistance to the gradual and progressive codification of international law. This Manual below was drafted by Gustave Moynier and unanimously adopted by the Institute. Its purpose is stated in the preface.


identifier: Final Act of the Hague Peace Conference, 1899

title: Final Act Of the International Peace Conference. The Hague, 29 July 1899.

action: signature

country: Thailand

country: Netherlands

country: Sweden

country: Spain

country: Denmark

country: France

country: Russian Federation

country: Austria-Hungary

country: Mexico

country: Switzerland

country: Germany

country: China

country: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

country: Bulgaria

country: Luxembourg

country: Greece

country: United States of America

country: Romania

country: Italy

country: Portugal

country: Montenegro (1878–1918)

country: Islamic Republic of Iran

country: Norway

country: Türkiye

country: Japan

country: Belgium

text: The International Peace Conference, convoked in the best interests of humanity by His Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias, assembled, on the invitation of the Government of Her Majesty the Queen of the Netherlands, in the Royal House in the Wood at The Hague on 18 May 1899.

text: The Powers enumerated in the following list took part in the Conference, to which they appointed the delegates named below:

text: (Here follow the names of delegates)

text: In a series of meetings, between 18 May and 29 July 1899, in which the constant desire of the delegates above-mentioned has been to realize, in the fullest manner possible, the generous views of the august initiator of the Conference and the intentions of their Governments, the Conference has agreed, for submission for signature by the plenipotentiaries, on the text of the Convention and Declarations enumerated below and annexed to the present Act:

text: I. Convention for the peaceful adjustment of international differences.

text: II. Convention regarding the laws and customs of war on land.

text: III.Convention for the adaptation to maritime warfare of the principles of the Geneva Convention of 22 August 1864.

text: IV. Three Declarations:

text: 1. To prohibit the launching of projectiles and explosives from balloons or by other similar new methods.

text: 2. To prohibit the use of projectiles, the only object of which is the diffusion of asphyxiating or deleterious gases.

text: 3. To prohibit the use of bullets which expand or flatten easily in the human body, such as bullets with a hard envelope, of which the envelope does not entirely cover the core or is pierced with incisions.

text: These Conventions and Declarations shall form so many separate Acts. These Acts shall be dated this day, and may be signed up to 31 December 1899, by the Plenipotentiaries of the Powers represented at the International Peace Conference at The Hague.

text: Guided by the same sentiments, the Conference has adopted unanimously the following Resolution:

text: "The Conference is of opinion that the restriction of military charges, which are at present a heavy burden on the world, is extremely desirable for the increase of the material and moral welfare of mankind."

text: It has besides formulated the following ' Voeux ':

text: 1. The Conference, taking into consideration the preliminary step taken by the Swiss Federal Government for the revision of the Geneva Convention, expresses the wish that steps may be shortly taken for the assembly of a special Conference having for its object the revision of that Convention.

text: This wish was voted unanimously.

text: 2. The Conference expresses the wish that the questions of the rights and duties of neutrals may be inserted in the program of a Conference in the near future.

text: 3. The Conference expresses the wish that the questions with regard to rifles and naval guns, as considered by it, may be studied by the Governments with the object of coming to an agreement respecting the employment of new types and calibers.

text: 4. The Conference expresses the wish that the Governments, taking into consideration the proposals made at the Conference, may examine the possibility of an agreement as to the limitation of armed forces by land and sea, and of war budgets.

text: 5. The Conference expresses the wish that the proposal, which contemplates the declaration of the inviolability of private property in naval warfare, may be referred to a subsequent Conference for consideration.

text: 6. The Conference expresses the wish that the proposal to settle the question of the bombardment of ports, towns, and villages by a naval force may be referred to a subsequent Conference for consideration.

text: The last five wishes were voted unanimously, saving some abstentions.

text: In faith of which, the Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Act, and have affixed their seals thereto.

text: Done at The Hague, 29 July 1899, in one copy only, which shall be deposited in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and of which copies, duly certified, shall be delivered to all the Powers represented at the Conference.

text: (Here follow signatures)

text: Final Act

summary: The First Hague Peace Conference of 1899 was convened on the initiative of the Czar of Russia, Nicholas II, "with the object of seeking the most effective means of ensuring to all peoples the benefits of a real and lasting peace, and, above all, of limiting the progressive development of existing armaments" (Russian note of 30 December 1898/11 January 1899). The Conference, at which 26 governments were represented, assembled on 18 May 1899 and adjourned on 29 July 1899. It failed to reach agreement on the primary object for which it was called, namely the limitation or reduction of armaments, but adopted the three Conventions and the other acts mentioned in the Final Protocol. Provision was made for the convening of a second conference. This conference lasted from 15 June until 18 October 1907. The Final Acts constitute authoritative statements of the results achieved. They were signed by the delegates but not ratified by the participating states. They have no binding force.

type: internationell-overenskommelse


identifier: Hague Convention (II) on the Laws and Customs of War on Land, 1899

depositary: Netherlands

reference: Hague Convention (II) on the Laws and Customs of War on Land, 1899

title: Convention (II) with Respect to the Laws and Customs of War on Land and its annex: Regulations concerning the Laws and Customs of War on Land. The Hague, 29 July 1899.

action: accession

country: France

country: Bolivia

country: Honduras

country: Austria

action: succession

country: Russian Federation

country: Sweden

country: Netherlands

country: Mexico

country: Cuba

country: Chile

country: Dominican Republic

country: Thailand

country: Switzerland

country: Serbia

country: Peru

country: Uruguay

country: Guatemala

country: Ecuador

country: South Africa

country: Spain

text: Regulations Respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land

text: (List of Contracting Parties)

text: Considering that, while seeking means to preserve peace and prevent armed conflicts among nations, it is likewise necessary to have regard to cases where an appeal to arms may be caused by events which their solicitude could not avert;

text: Animated by the desire to serve, even in this extreme hypothesis, the interests of humanity and the ever increasing requirements of civilization;

text: Thinking it important, with this object, to revise the laws and general customs of war, either with the view of defining them more precisely or of laying down certain limits for the purpose of modifying their severity as far as possible;

text: Inspired by these views which are enjoined at the present day, as they were twenty-five years ago at the time of the Brussels Conference in 1874, by a wise and generous foresight;

text: Have, in this spirit, adopted a great number of provisions, the object of which is to define and govern the usages of war on land.

text: In view of the High Contracting Parties, these provisions, the wording of which has been inspired by the desire to diminish the evils of war so far as military necessities permit, are destined to serve as general rules of conduct for belligerents in their relations with each other and with populations.

text: It has not, however, been possible to agree forthwith on provisions embracing all the circumstances which occur in practice.

text: On the other hand, it could not be intended by the High Contracting Parties that the cases not provided for should, for want of a written provision, be left to the arbitrary judgment of the military commanders.

text: Until a more complete code of the laws of war is issued, the High Contracting Parties think it right to declare that in cases not included in the Regulations adopted by them, populations and belligerents remain under the protection and empire of the principles of international law, as they result from the usages established between civilized nations, from the laws of humanity, and the requirements of the public conscience;

text: They declare that it is in this sense especially that Articles 1 and 2 of the Regulations adopted must be understood;

text: The High Contracting Parties, desiring to conclude a Convention to this effect, have appointed as their Plenipotentiaries, to wit:

text: (Here follow the names of Plenipotentiaries)

text: Who, after communication of their full powers, found in good and due form, have agreed on the following:

text: Preamble

text: Article. 1. The High Contracting Parties shall issue instructions to their armed land forces, which shall be in conformity with the "

text: Regulations respecting the laws and customs of war on land

text: " annexed to the present Convention.

text: Article 1

text: Art. 2. The provisions contained in the Regulations mentioned in Article I are only binding on the Contracting Powers, in case of war between two or more of them.

text: These provisions shall cease to be binding from the time when, in a war between Contracting Powers, a non-Contracting Power joins one of the belligerents.

text: Article 2

text: Art. 3. The present Convention shall be ratified as speedily as possible.

text: The ratifications shall be deposited at The Hague.

text: A ' procès-verbal ' shall be drawn up recording the receipt of each ratification, and a copy, duly certified, shall be sent through the diplomatic channel, to all the Contracting Powers.

text: Article 3

text: Art. 4. Non-Signatory Powers are allowed to adhere to the present Convention.

text: For this purpose they must make their adhesion known to the Contracting Powers by means of a written notification, addressed to the Netherlands Government, and by it communicated to all the other Contracting Powers.

text: Article 4

text: Art. 5. In the event of one of the High Contracting Parties denouncing the present Convention, such denunciation would not take effect until a year after the written notification made to the Netherlands Government, and by it at once communicated to all the other Contracting Powers.

text: This denunciation shall affect only the notifying Power.

text: In faith of which the Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Convention and affixed their seals thereto.

text: Done at The Hague 29 July 1899, in a single copy, which shall be kept in the archives of the Netherlands Government, and copies of which, duly certified, shall be delivered to the Contracting Powers through the diplomatic channel.

text: (Here follow signatures)

text: Article 5

text: Article 1. The laws, rights, and duties of war apply not only to armies, but also to militia and volunteer corps fulfilling the following conditions:

text: 1. To be commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates;

text: 2. To have a fixed distinctive emblem recognizable at a distance;

text: 3. To carry arms openly; and

text: 4. To conduct their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.

text: In countries where militia or volunteer corps constitute the army, or form part of it, they are included under the denomination "army."

text: Regulations: Art. 1

text: Art. 2. The population of a territory which has not been occupied who, on the enemy's approach, spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading troops without having time to organize themselves in accordance with Article 1 , shall be regarded as belligerent, if they respect the laws and customs of war.

text: Regulations: Art. 2

text: Art. 3. The armed forces of the belligerent parties may consist of combatants and non-combatants. In case of capture by the enemy both have a right to be treated as prisoners of war.

text: Regulations: Art. 3

text: Art. 4. Prisoners of war are in the power of the hostile Government, but not in that of the individuals or corps who captured them.

text: They must be humanely treated.

text: All their personal belongings, except arms, horses, and military papers remain their property.

text: Regulations: Art. 4

text: Art. 5. Prisoners of war may be interned in a town, fortress, camp, or any other locality, and bound not to go beyond certain fixed limits; but they can only be confined as an indispensable measure of safety.

text: Regulations: Art. 5

text: Art. 6. The State may utilize the labour of prisoners of war according to their rank and aptitude. Their tasks shall not be excessive, and shall have nothing to do with the military operations.

text: Prisoners may be authorized to work for the public service, for private persons, or on their own account.

text: Work done for the State shall be paid for according to the tariffs in force for soldiers of the national army employed on similar tasks.

text: When the work is for other branches of the public service or for private persons, the conditions shall be settled in agreement with the military authorities.

text: The wages of the prisoners shall go towards improving their position, and the balance shall be paid them at the time of their release, after deducting the cost of their maintenance.

text: Regulations: Art. 6

text: Art. 7. The Government into whose hands prisoners of war have fallen is bound to maintain them.

text: Failing a special agreement between the belligerents, prisoners of war shall be treated as regards food, quarters, and clothing, on the same footing as the troops of the Government which has captured them.

text: Regulations: Art. 7

text: Art. 8. Prisoners of war shall be subject to the laws, regulations, and orders in force in the army of the State into whose hands they have fallen. Any act of insubordination warrants the adoption, as regards them, of such measures of severity as may be necessary.

text: Escaped prisoners, recaptured before they have succeeded in rejoining their army, or before quitting the territory occupied by the army that captured them, are liable to disciplinary punishment.

text: Prisoners who, after succeeding in escaping are again taken prisoners, are not liable to any punishment for the previous flight.

text: Regulations: Art. 8

text: Art. 9. Every prisoner of war, if questioned, is bound to declare his true name and rank, and if he disregards this rule, he is liable to a curtailment of the advantages accorded to the prisoners of war of his class.

text: Regulations: Art. 9

text: Art. 10. Prisoners of war may be set at liberty on parole if the laws of their country authorize it, and, in such a case, they are bound, on their personal honour, scrupulously to fulfil, both as regards their own Government and the Government by whom they were made prisoners, the engagements they have contracted.

text: In such cases, their own Government shall not require of nor accept from them any service incompatible with the parole given.

text: Regulations: Art. 10

text: Art. 11. A prisoner of war cannot be forced to accept his liberty on parole; similarly the hostile Government is not obliged to assent to the prisoner,s request to be set at liberty on parole.

text: Regulations: Art. 11

text: Art. 12. Any prisoner of war, who is liberated on parole and recaptured, bearing arms against the Government to whom he had pledged his honour, or against the allies of that Government, forfeits his right to be treated as a prisoner of war, and can be brought before the courts.

text: Regulations: Art. 12

text: Art. 13. Individuals who follow an army without directly belonging to it, such as newspaper correspondents and reporters, sutlers, contractors, who fall into the enemy's hands, and whom the latter think fit to detain, have a right to be treated as prisoners of war, provided they can produce a certificate from the military authorities of the army they were accompanying.

text: Regulations: Art. 13

text: Art. 14. A bureau for information relative to prisoners of war is instituted, on the commencement of hostilities, in each of the belligerent States, and, when necessary, in the neutral countries on whose territory belligerents have been received. This bureau is intended to answer all inquiries about prisoners of war, and is furnished by the various services concerned with all the necessary information to enable it to keep an individual return for each prisoner of war. It is kept informed of internments and changes, as well as of admissions into hospital and deaths.

text: It is also the duty of the information bureau to receive and collect all objects of personal use, valuables, letters, etc., found on the battlefields or left by prisoners who have died in hospital or ambulance, and to transmit them to those interested.

text: Regulations: Art. 14

text: Art. 15. Relief societies for prisoners of war, which are regularly constituted in accordance with the law of the country with the object of serving as the intermediary for charity, shall receive from the belligerents for themselves and their duly accredited agents every facility, within the bounds of military requirements and administrative regulations, for the effective accomplishment of their humane task. Delegates of these societies may be admitted to the places of internment for the distribution of relief, as also to the halting places of repatriated prisoners, if furnished with a personal permit by the military authorities, and on giving an engagement in writing to comply with all their regulations for order and police.

text: Regulations: Art. 15

text: Art. 16. The information bureau shall have the privilege of free postage. Letters, money orders, and valuables, as well as postal parcels destined for the prisoners of war or dispatched by them, shall be free of all postal duties both in the countries of origin and destination, as well as in those they pass through.

text: Gifts and relief in kind for prisoners of war shall be admitted free of all duties of entry and others, as well as of payments for carriage by the Government railways.

text: Regulations: Art. 16

text: Art. 17. Officers taken prisoners may receive, if necessary, the full pay allowed them in this position by their country's regulations, the amount to be repaid by their Government.

text: Regulations: Art. 17

text: Art. 18. Prisoners of war shall enjoy every latitude in the exercise of their religion, including attendance at their own church services, provided only they comply with the regulations for order and police issued by the military authorities.

text: Regulations: Art. 18

text: Art. 19. The wills of prisoners of war are received or drawn up on the same conditions as for soldiers of the national army.

text: The same rules shall be observed regarding death certificates, as well as for the burial of prisoners of war, due regard being paid to their grade and rank.

text: Regulations: Art. 19

text: Art. 20. After the conclusion of peace, the repatriation of prisoners of war shall take place as speedily as possible.

text: Regulations: Art. 20

text: Art. 21. The obligations of belligerents with regard to the sick and wounded are governed by the Geneva Convention of 22 August 1864, subject to any modifications which may be introduced into it.

text: Regulations: Art. 21

text: Art. 22. The right of belligerents to adopt means of injuring the enemy is not unlimited.

text: Regulations: Art. 22

text: Art. 23. Besides the prohibitions provided by special Conventions, it is especially prohibited

text: (a) To employ poison or poisoned arms;

text: (b) To kill or wound treacherously individuals belonging to the hostile nation or army;

text: (c) To kill or wound an enemy who, having laid down arms, or having no longer means of defence, has surrendered at discretion;

text: (d) To declare that no quarter will be given;

text: (e) To employ arms, projectiles, or material of a nature to cause superfluous injury;

text: (f) To make improper use of a flag of truce, the national flag or military ensigns and uniform of the enemy, as well as the distinctive badges of the Geneva Convention;

text: (g) To destroy or seize the enemy's property, unless such destruction or seizure be imperatively demanded by the necessities of war.

text: Regulations: Art. 23

text: Art. 24. Ruses of war and the employment of methods necessary to obtain information about the enemy and the country, are considered allowable.

text: Regulations: Art. 24

text: Art. 25. The attack or bombardment of towns, villages, habitations or buildings which are not defended, is prohibited.

text: Regulations: Art. 25

text: Art. 26. The commander of an attacking force, before commencing a bombardment, except in the case of an assault, should do all he can to warn the authorities.

text: Regulations: Art. 26

text: Art. 27. In sieges and bombardments all necessary steps should be taken to spare as far as possible edifices devoted to religion, art, science, and charity, hospitals, and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not used at the same time for military purposes.

text: The besieged should indicate these buildings or places by some particular and visible signs, which should previously be notified to the assailants.

text: Regulations: Art. 27

text: Art. 28. The pillage of a town or place, even when taken by assault is prohibited

text: Regulations: Art. 28

text: Art. 29. An individual can only be considered a spy if, acting clandestinely, or on false pretences, he obtains, or seeks to obtain information in the zone of operations of a belligerent, with the intention of communicating it to the hostile party.

text: Thus, soldiers not in disguise who have penetrated into the zone of operations of a hostile army to obtain information are not considered spies. Similarly, the following are not considered spies: soldiers or civilians, carrying out their mission openly, charged with the delivery of despatches destined either for their own army or for that of the enemy. To this class belong likewise individuals sent in balloons to deliver despatches, and generally to maintain communication between the various parts of an army or a territory.

text: Regulations: Art. 29

text: Art. 30. A spy taken in the act cannot be punished without previous trial.

text: Regulations: Art. 30

text: Art. 31. A spy who, after rejoining the army to which he belongs, is subsequently captured by the enemy, is treated as a prisoner of war, and incurs no responsibility for his previous acts of espionage.

text: Regulations: Art. 31

text: Art. 32. An individual is considered as a parlementaire who is authorized by one of the belligerents to enter into communication with the other, and who carries a white flag. He has a right to inviolability, as well as the trumpeter, bugler, or drummer, the flag-bearer and the interpreter who may accompany him.

text: Regulations: Art. 32

text: Art. 33. The chief to whom a parlementaire is sent is not obliged to receive him in all circumstances.

text: He can take all steps necessary to prevent the parlementaire taking advantage of his mission to obtain information.

text: In case of abuse, he has the right to detain the parlementaire temporarily.

text: Regulations: Art. 33

text: Art. 34. The parlementaire loses his rights of inviolability if it is proved beyond doubt that he has taken advantage of his privileged position to provoke or commit an act of treason.

text: Regulations: Art. 34

text: Art. 35. Capitulations agreed on between the Contracting Parties must be in accordance with the rules of military honour.

text: When once settled, they must be scrupulously observed by both the parties.

text: Regulations: Art. 35

text: Art. 36. An armistice suspends military operations by mutual agreement between the belligerent parties. If its duration is not fixed, the belligerent parties can resume operations at any time, provided always the enemy is warned within the time agreed upon, in accordance with the terms of the armistice.

text: Regulations: Art. 36

text: Art. 37. An armistice may be general or local. The first suspends all military operations of the belligerent States; the second, only those between certain fractions of the belligerent armies and in a fixed radius.

text: Regulations: Art. 37

text: Art. 38. An armistice must be notified officially, and in good time, to the competent authorities and the troops. Hostilities are suspended immediately after the notification, or at a fixed date.

text: Regulations: Art. 38

text: Art. 39. It is for the Contracting Parties to settle, in the terms of the armistice, what communications may be held, on the theatre of war, with the population and with each other.

text: Regulations: Art. 39

text: Art. 40. Any serious violation of the armistice by one of the parties gives the other party the right to denounce it, and even, in case of urgency, to recommence hostilities at once.

text: Regulations: Art. 40

text: Art. 41. A violation of the terms of the armistice by private individuals acting on their own initiative, only confers the right of demanding the punishment of the offenders, and, if necessary, indemnity for the losses sustained.

text: Regulations: Art. 41

text: Art. 42. Territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army.

text: The occupation applies only to the territory where such authority is established, and in a position to assert itself.

text: Regulations: Art. 42

text: Art. 43. The authority of the legitimate power having actually passed into the hands of the occupant, the latter shall take all steps in his power to re-establish and insure, as far as possible, public order and safety, while respecting, unless absolutely prevented, the laws in force in the country.

text: Regulations: Art. 43

text: Art. 44. Any compulsion of the population of occupied territory to take part in military operations against its own country is prohibited.

text: Regulations: Art. 44

text: Art. 45. Any pressure on the population of occupied territory to take the oath to the hostile Power is prohibited.

text: Regulations: Art. 45

text: Art. 46. Family honours and rights, individual lives and private property, as well as religious convictions and liberty, must be respected.

text: Private property cannot be confiscated.

text: Regulations: Art. 46

text: Art. 47. Pillage is formally prohibited.

text: Regulations: Art. 47

text: Art. 48. If, in the territory occupied, the occupant collects the taxes, dues, and tolls imposed for the benefit of the State, he shall do it, as far as possible, in accordance with the rules in existence and the assessment in force, and will in consequence be bound to defray the expenses of the administration of the occupied territory on the same scale as that by which the legitimate Government was bound.

text: Regulations: Art. 48

text: Art. 49. If, besides the taxes mentioned in the preceding Article, the occupant levies other money taxes in the occupied territory, this can only be for military necessities or the administration of such territory.

text: Regulations: Art. 49

text: Art. 50. No general penalty, pecuniary or otherwise, can be inflicted on the population on account of the acts of individuals for which it cannot be regarded as collectively responsible.

text: Regulations: Art. 50

text: Art. 51. No tax shall be collected except under a written order and on the responsibility of a commander-in-chief.

text: This collection shall only take place, as far as possible, in accordance with the rules in existence and the assessment of taxes in force.

text: For every payment a receipt shall be given to the taxpayer.

text: Regulations: Art. 51

text: Art. 52. Neither requisitions in kind nor services can be demanded from communes or inhabitants except for the necessities of the army of occupation. They must be in proportion to the resources of the country, and of such a nature as not to involve the population in the obligation of taking part in military operations against their country.

text: These requisitions and services shall only be demanded on the authority of the commander in the locality occupied.

text: The contributions in kind shall, as far as possible, be paid for in ready money; if not, their receipt shall be acknowledged.

text: Regulations: Art. 52

text: Art. 53. An army of occupation can only take possession of the cash, funds, and property liable to requisition belonging strictly to the State, depots arms, means of transport, stores and supplies, and, generally movable property of the State which may be used for military operations.

text: Railway plant, land telegraphs, telephones, steamers and other ships, apart from cases governed by maritime law, as well as depots of arms and, generally, all kinds of munitions of war, even though belonging to companies or to private persons, are likewise material which may serve for military operations, but they must be restored at the conclusion of peace, and indemnities paid for them.

text: Regulations: Art. 53

text: Art. 54. The plant of railways coming from neutral States, whether the property of those States, or of companies, or of private persons, shall be sent back to them as soon as possible.

text: Regulations: Art. 54

text: Art. 55. The occupying State shall only be regarded as administrator and usufructuary of the public buildings, real property, forests and agricultural works belonging to the hostile State, and situated in the occupied country. It must protect the capital of these properties, and administer it according to the rules of usufruct.

text: Regulations: Art. 55

text: Art. 56. The property of the communes, that of religious, charitable, and educational institutions, and those of arts and science, even when State property, shall be treated as private property.

text: All seizure of and destruction, or intentional damage done to such institutions, to historical monuments, works of art or science, is prohibited, and should be made the subject of proceedings.

text: Regulations: Art. 56

text: Art. 57. A neutral State which receives in its territory troops belonging to the belligerent armies shall intern them, as far as possible, at a distance from the theatre of war.

text: It can keep them in camps, and even confine them in fortresses or locations assigned for this purpose.

text: It shall decide whether officers may be left at liberty on giving their parole that they will not leave the neutral territory without authorization.

text: Regulations: Art. 57

text: Art. 58. Failing a special convention, the neutral State shall supply the interned with the food, clothing, and relief required by humanity.

text: At the conclusion of peace, the expenses caused by the internment shall be made good.

text: Regulations: Art. 58

text: Art. 59. A neutral State may authorize the passage over its territory of wounded or sick belonging to the belligerent armies, on condition that the trains bringing them shall carry neither combatants nor war material. In such a case, the neutral State is bound to adopt such measures of safety and control as may be necessary for the purpose.

text: Wounded and sick brought under these conditions into neutral territory by one of the belligerents, and belonging to the hostile party, must be guarded by the neutral State, so as to insure their not taking part again in the military operations. The same duty shall devolve on the neutral State with regard to wounded or sick of the other army who may be committed to its care.

text: Regulations: Art. 59

text: Art. 60. The Geneva Convention applies to sick and wounded interned in neutral territory.

text: Regulations: Art. 60

summary: One of the purposes for which the First Hague Peace Conference of 1899 was convened was "the revision of the declaration concerning the laws and customs of war elaborated in 1874 by the Conference of Brussels, and not yet ratified" (Russian circular note of 30 December 1898). The Conference of 1899 succeeded in adopting a Convention on land warfare to which Regulations are annexed. The Convention and the Regulations were revised at the Second International Peace Conference in 1907. The two versions of the Convention and the Regulations differ only slightly from each other. Seventeen of the States which ratified the 1899 Convention did not ratify the 1907 version (Argentina, Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Greece, Italy, Korea, Montenegro, Paraguay, Persia, Peru, Serbia, Spain, Turkey, Uruguay, Venezuela). These States or their successor States remain formally bound by the 1899 Convention in their relations with the other parties thereto. As between the parties to the 1907 Convention, this Convention has replaced the 1899 Convention (see Article 4 of the 1907 Convention). The provisions of the two Conventions on land warfare, like most of the substantive provisions of the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907, are considered as embodying rules of customary international law. As such they are also binding on states which are not formally parties to them. In 1946, the Nüremberg International Military Tribunal stated with regard to the Hague Convention on land warfare of 1907: "The rules of land warfare expressed in the Convention undoubtedly represented an advance over existing International Law at the time of their adoption ... but by 1939 these rules ... were recognized by all civilized nations and were regarded as being declaratory of the laws and customs of war" (reprinted in AJIL, Vol. 41, 1947, pp. 248-249). The International Military Tribunal for the Far East expressed, in 1948, an identical view. The rules embodied in the Regulations were partly reaffirmed and developed by the two Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 adopted in 1977.


identifier: Hague Convention (III) on Maritime Warfare, 1899

title: Convention (III) for the Adaptation to Maritime Warfare of the Principles of the Geneva Convention of 22 August 1864. The Hague, 29 July 1899.

country: Brazil

country: Romania

country: Germany

country: Islamic Republic of Iran

country: Denmark

country: China

country: Panama

country: Fiji

country: United States of America

country: Haiti

country: Venezuela

country: Belarus

country: Greece

country: Bulgaria

country: Japan

country: Portugal

country: Belgium

country: Colombia

country: Italy

country: Honduras

country: Korea

country: Norway

country: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

text: (List of Contracting Parties)

text: Alike animated by the desire to diminish, as far as depends on them the evils inseparable from warfare, and wishing with this object to adapt to maritime warfare the principles of the Geneva Convention of 22 August 1864,

text: have decided to conclude a convention to this effect:

text: They have, in consequence, appointed as their

text: Plenipotentiaries, to wit:

text: (Here follow the names of Plenipotentiaries)

text: Who, after communication of their full powers, found in good and due form, have agreed on the following

text: provisions:

text: Preamble

text: Article 1. Military hospital ships, that is to say, ships constructed or assigned by States specially and solely for the purpose of assisting the wounded, sick or shipwrecked, and the names of which shall have been communicated to the belligerent Powers at the beginning or during the course of hostilities, and in any case before they are employed, shall be respected and cannot be captured while hostilities last.

text: These ships, moreover, are not on the same footing as men-of-war as regards their stay in a neutral port.

text: Article 1

text: Art. 2. Hospital ships, equipped wholly or in part at the cost of private individuals or officially recognized relief societies, shall likewise be respected and exempt from capture, provided the belligerent Power to whom they belong has given them an official commission and has notified their names to the hostile Power at the commencement of or during hostilities, and in any case before they are employed.

text: These ships should be furnished with a certificate from the competent authorities, declaring that they have been under their control while fitting out and on final departure.

text: Article 2

text: Art. 3. Hospital ships, equipped wholly or in part at the cost of private individuals or officially recognized societies of neutral countries, shall be respected and exempt from capture, if the neutral Power to whom they belong has given them an official commission and notified their names to the belligerent Powers at the commencement of or during hostilities, and in any case before they are employed.

text: Article 3

text: Art. 4. The ships mentioned in Articles l [ Link ] , 2 and 3 shall afford relief and assistance to the wounded, sick, and shipwrecked of the belligerents independently of their nationality.

text: The Governments engage not to use these ships for any military purpose.

text: These ships must not in any way hamper the movements of the combatants.

text: During and after an engagement they will act at their own risk and peril.

text: The belligerents will have the right to control and visit them; they can refuse to help them, order them off, make them take a certain course, and put a commissioner on board; they can even detain them, if important circumstances require it.

text: As far as possible the belligerents shall inscribe in the sailing papers of the hospital ships the orders they give them.

text: Article 4

text: Art. 5. The military hospital ships shall be distinguished by being painted white outside with a horizontal band of green about a metre and a half in breadth.

text: The ships mentioned in Articles 2 and 3 shall be distinguished by being painted white outside with a horizontal band of red about a metre and a half in breadth.

text: The boats of the ships above mentioned, as also small craft which may be used for hospital work, shall be distinguished by similar painting.

text: All hospital ships shall make themselves known by hoisting, together with their national flag, the white flag with a red cross provided by the Geneva Convention.

text: Article 5

text: Art. 6. Neutral merchantmen, yachts, or vessels, having, or taking on board, sick, wounded, or shipwrecked of the belligerents, cannot be captured for so doing, but they are liable to capture for any violation of neutrality they may have committed.

text: Article 6

text: Art. 7. The religious, medical, or hospital staff of any captured ship is inviolable, and its members cannot be made prisoners of war. On leaving the ship they take with them the objects and surgical instruments which are their own private property.

text: This staff shall continue to discharge its duties while necessary, and can afterwards leave when the commander-in-chief considers it possible.

text: The belligerents must guarantee to the staff that has fallen into their hands the enjoyment of their salaries intact.

text: Article 7

text: Art. 8. Sailors and soldiers who are taken on board when sick or wounded, to whatever nation they belong, shall be protected and looked after by the captors.

text: Article 8

text: Art. 9. The shipwrecked, wounded, or sick of one of the belligerents who fall into the hands of the other, are prisoners of war. The captor must decide, according to circumstances, if it is best to keep them or send them to a port of his own country, to a neutral port, or even to a hostile port. In the last case, prisoners thus repatriated cannot serve as long as the war lasts.

text: Article 9

text: Art. 10. The shipwrecked, wounded, or sick, who are landed at a neutral port with the consent of the local authorities, must, failing a contrary arrangement between the neutral State and the belligerents, be guarded by the neutral State, so that they can not again take part in the military operations.

text: The expenses of tending them in hospital and internment shall be borne by the State to which the shipwrecked, wounded, or sick belong.

text: Article 10

text: Art. 11. The rules contained in the above articles [ Link ] are binding only on the Contracting Powers, in case of war between two or more of them.

text: The said rules shall cease to be binding from the time when, in a war between the Contracting Powers, one of the belligerents is joined by a non-Contracting Power.

text: Article 11

text: Art. 12. The present Convention shall be ratified as soon as possible.

text: The ratifications shall be deposited at The Hague.

text: On the receipt of each ratification a ' procès-verbal ' shall be drawn up, a copy of which, duly certified, shall be sent through the diplomatic channel to all the Contracting Powers.

text: Article 12

text: Art. 13. The non-Signatory Powers who accepted the Geneva Convention of 22 August 1864, are allowed to adhere to the present Convention.

text: For this purpose they must make their adhesion known to the Contracting Powers by means of a written notification addressed to the Netherlands Government, and by it communicated to all the other Contracting Powers.

text: Article 13

text: Art. 14. In the event of one of the High Contracting Parties denouncing the present Convention, such denunciation shall not take effect until a year after the notification made in writing to the Netherlands Government, and forthwith communicated by it to all the other Contracting Powers.

text: This denunciation shall only affect the notifying Power.

text: In testimony whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Convention and affixed their seals thereto.

text: Done at The Hague, 29 July 1899, in a single copy, which shall be kept in the archives of the Government of the Netherlands, and copies of which duly certified, shall be sent through the diplomatic channel to the Contracting Powers.

text: (Here follow signatures)

text: Article 14

summary: The Additional Articles to the Geneva Convention which were drafted in 1868 in order to adapt the principles of the Geneva Convention to sea warfare failed to secure any ratifications. It was not before the end of the century that the question of the revision of the Geneva Convention and especially of the adoption of supplementary articles concerning sea warfare gained new support. The International Committee of the Red Cross, at the request of the Swiss Federal Council, prepared a new draft, but before a diplomatic conference could be convened at Geneva, the Czar of Russia took the initiative to convene the First Hague Peace Conference of 1899 and proposed as one of the subjects the "adaptation to naval war of the stipulations of the Geneva Convention of 1864." The Convention which was adopted at The Hague in 1899 was replaced by the Hague Convention (X) of 1907. It is no longer in force.


doctype: declaration

identifier: Hague Declaration (IV,1) prohibiting Projectiles from Balloons, 1899

title: Declaration (IV,1), to Prohibit, for the Term of Five Years, the Launching of Projectiles and Explosives from Balloons, and Other Methods of Similar Nature. The Hague, 29 July 1899.

country: Türkiye

country: France

country: Luxembourg

country: Switzerland

country: Denmark

country: Netherlands

country: China

country: Romania

country: Sweden

country: Mexico

country: Spain

country: Montenegro (1878–1918)

country: Germany

country: Russian Federation

country: Austria-Hungary

country: Thailand

country: Serbia

country: Islamic Republic of Iran

text: The undersigned, Plenipotentiaries of the Powers represented at the International Peace Conference at The Hague, duly authorized to that effect by their Governments, inspired by the sentiments which found expression in the Declaration of St. Petersburg of 29 November (11 December) 1868,

text: Declare that:

text: The Contracting Powers agree to prohibit, for a term of five years, the launching of projectiles and explosives from balloons, or by other new methods of a similar nature.

text: The present Declaration is only binding on the Contracting Powers in case of war between two or more of them.

text: It shall cease to be binding from the time when, in a war between the Contracting Powers, one of the belligerents is joined by a non-Contracting Power.

text: The present Declaration shall be ratified as soon as possible.

text: A ' procès-verbal ' shall be drawn up on the receipt of each ratification, of which a copy, duly certified, shall be sent through the diplomatic channel, to all the Contracting Powers.

text: The non-Signatory Powers may adhere to the present Declaration. For this purpose they must make their adhesion known to the Contracting Powers by means of a written notification addressed to the Netherlands Government, and communicated by it to all the other Contracting Powers.

text: In the event of one of the High Contracting Parties denouncing the present Declaration, such denunciation shall not take effect until a year after the notification made in writing to the Netherlands Government, and by it forthwith communicated to all the other Contracting Powers.

text: In faith of which the Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Declaration, and affixed their seais thereto.

text: Done at The Hague, 29 July 1899, in a single copy, which shall be kept in the archives of the Netherlands Government, and of which copies, duly certified, shall be sent through the diplomatic channel to the Contracting Powers.

text: (Here follow signatures)

text: Declaration

summary: The Russian circular note of 30 December 1898 proposing the programme of the First Hague Peace Conference, suggested as one of the topics "the prohibition of the discharge of any kind of projectile or explosive from balloons or by similar means." Balloons had been used on a small scale in previous wars, and there was much speculation about the future use of aircraft in war. At the First Hague Conference the prohibition was accepted for a period of five years which expired on 4 September 1905. Between the two Hague Conferences progress was made in aerial navigation which induced many states, especially the great Powers, to adopt a more reserved attitude. The Declaration of 1907 was to remain in force until the projected Third Peace Conference. This Conference never having met, the Declaration of 1907 is still formally in force today. Many of the important States, however, such as France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia, did not sign or ratify it. Austria-Hungary signed but did not ratify it. Of the great Powers only Great Britain and the United States ratified the Declaration. The attempts, in 1907, to adopt a permanent prohibition of the discharge of projectiles from the air led to the insertion in Article 25 of the Hague Regulations on land warfare, which prohibits the attack or bombardment of undefended towns, villages, etc., of the words "by whatever means" in order to cover attack or bombardment from the air.