This chapter periodises the British historiography of international law in five parts. Its first period extends from Robert Ward’s Enquiry into the Foundation and History of the Law of Nations in Europe (1795) to Thomas Erskine Holland’s Oxford inaugural lecture on Alberico Gentili (1874), and traces the gradual professionalisation of the discipline and its historical strain. The second part examines the entanglement of empire and historicism in British international legal historiography from around 1870 to roughly 1920. The third part treats the symbolic coming of age of British international legal historiography, between the founding of the British Yearbook of International Law in 1920, and Hersch Lauterpacht’s pivotal enunciation of the so-called ‘Grotian’ tradition of international law after the Second World War. The fourth part explores the history of international law in the succeeding ‘age of Lauterpacht’ up to c. 1960, when historiographical advances came increasingly from the semi-periphery rather than the centre and from disciplines other than international law. The fifth part takes stock of the transdisciplinary ‘turn’ to the history of international law in the British world and the chapter concludes with reflections on the nascent field of comparative international legal history in the light of British developments over the longue durée.

This chapter examines China’s asymmetrical engagement with different areas of international adjudication at a time of rising Chinese assertiveness and influence in the shaping of international law. It first explores the relatively minor, yet still remarkable softening of China’s traditional strategic detachment from international adjudicative systems concerning general public international law, international criminal law and international human rights law. These areas exemplify China’s lowest point of engagement with the international adjudicative system. It then focusses on China’s deepening engagement with other international adjudicative systems – in the areas of international trade law and international commercial and investment law – and how the prevention and dispute settlement system of the Belt and Road Initiative is taking shape. It looks at China’s exploratory accommodation of international settlement mechanisms in the law of the sea and newer areas, before examining an array of concomitant cultural, historical, political and contemporary strategic factors weighing both for and against China moving beyond its current ‘comfort zone’ regarding international adjudication.

This chapter first retraces the origins and evolution of the community of shared future for mankind (CSFM) terminology up to its incorporation in the preamble to the Chinese Constitution, while highlighting its centrality in XI Jinping’s ‘Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era’. The chapter then examines the main tenets of the CSFM, which is portrayed as a symbol of China’s commitment to fostering a ‘new development paradigm and pursuing mutual benefit and win–win cooperation’ on a global scale, on the basis of XI Jinping’s writings. In doing this, it pays particular attention to how the CSFM builds on some of the fundamental principles of international law and how it is furthermore being fleshed out through various international legal initiatives. To better illustrate this analysis, the chapter conceptually analyzes the nine core elements of the CSFM with the visual aid of the metaphoric architectural form of a ‘paifang’. The chapter concludes by pointing to some factors weighing in favour of China’s further deepening its legalist approach to international relations as the most fitting companion to its grand strategy of ‘peaceful/development rise’.

This Handbook aims to provide much-needed clarity in regard to China’s renewed proactive engagement with international law and international institutions and how China assimilates into, and how it may intend to put its stamp on, international law by offering an updated and fairly comprehensive perspective on the multifaceted contemporary engagement of China with different areas of the international legal order. In order to do this, it disaggregates China’s relationship with international law into different topical areas,each of which is covered by one of the eight thematic parts of the Handbook. These offer specialized treatments of China’s relationship with international human rights law, international trade law, the law of the sea, international criminal law, international investment law, climate change law and international dispute settlement, among many others.