Hugo Grotius. Mare liberum: Prolegomena. The Free Sea: Preface.

"Hugo Grotius was a major figure in the fields of philosophy, political theory and law during the 16th and 17th centuries. In 1609, he published a book on international law, Mare Liberum, in which he formulated and argued for the principle that the sea was international territory, free for all nations to use for seafaring and trade. The disputation was directed towards the Portuguese and their claim of monopoly on the East Indian Trade. Although it ignited fierce controversy at publication, the work came to have great influence, and the principles laid out by Grotius form the foundation of the modern international law of the seas."
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