Paz E Arbitragem

In an age when empires stretched across the globe and militaries grew ever more powerful, one Portuguese thinker dared to argue that war itself was a moral obscenity. S. de Magalhães Lima's "Paz e Arbitragem," written in the late 19th century, makes the radical case that nations should resolve their disputes through reason and international tribunals rather than blood and conquest. Lima traces the emerging peace movement, examining the societies and activists who championed arbitration over armed conflict. He documents successful cases where nations had already chosen dialogue over warfare, using these as proof that his vision was not utopian fantasy but practical possibility. The book attacks militarism not just as destructive but as economically ruinous, a weight that crippled societies while serving no true purpose. Lima calls for nothing less than the abolition of standing armies and the construction of an international order grounded in justice rather than force. For readers interested in the intellectual history of peace, the roots of international law, or the long tradition of those who believed humanity could transcend its violent impulses, this treatise remains a passionate and principled artifact of hope.