THESIS: MUCH AS EPOCHAL WARS HAVE SHAPED THE CONSTITUTIONAL ORDER OF INDIVIDUAL STATES, THE GREAT PEACE SETTLEMENTS OF THESE WARS HAVE SHAPED THE CONSTITUTIONAL ORDER OF THE SOCIETY OF STATES.
The international congresses that concluded peace treaties ending epochal wars produced the constitutions of the society of states for their respective eras. This process, beginning in Europe with the birth of a small society of states during the Renaissance, eventually expanded to encompass the globe. International law can be understood in terms of these constitutions and thus as having developed in several distinct periods. The study of this development provides a foundation for understanding the next constitutional era for the society of states.