The concept of a just war is rooted in Classical Roman and biblical Hebraic culture. Just war theory within Christian thought began to coalesce in the writings of St. Clement and St. Ambrose, but it found full expression in St. Augustine’s Contra Faustum. The secular case for just war was presented in Hugo Grotius’s De Jure Belli ac Pacis (On the Law of War and Peace; 1625). Grotius stated that war is justifiable only if a country faces imminent danger and the use of force is both necessary and proportionate to the threat.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style