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tributions, and that they try to secure to the individual contributors as well as to contributing municipalities the possibility of being indemnified afterwards by their own Government, thus shifting, as far as possible, the burden of supporting the war from private individuals and municipalities to the State proper.1

Here also, as in the case of requisitions, it must be specially observed that article 5 of the Geneva Convention enacts that inhabitants of the enemy territory who entertain wounded soldiers shall be exempted from a part of the contributions of war which may be imposed.

Wanton destruc

tion pro

hibited.

VIII

DESTRUCTION OF ENEMY PROPERTY

Grotius, III. c. 5, §§ 1-3; c. 12—Vattel, III. §§ 166-168-Hall, § 186 -Lawrence, § 229-Manning, p. 186-Twiss, II. §§ 65-69-Halleck, II. pp. 63, 64, 71, 74-Taylor, §§ 481-482-Wharton, III. § 349— Wheaton, $$ 347-351-Bluntschli, §§ 649, 651, 662, 663-Heffter, $ 125-Lueder in Holtzendorff, IV. pp. 482-485-Klüber, § 262G. F. Martens, II. § 280-Ullmann, § 149-Bonfils, No. 1078— Pradier-Fodéré, VI. Nos. 2770-2774-Rivier, II. pp. 265–268— Calvo, IV. §§ 2215-2222-Fiore, III. Nos. 1383-1388-Martens, II. § 110-Longuet, §§ 99, 100-Mérignhac, pp. 266-268-Kriegsgebrauch, pp. 52-56-Holland, War, Nos. 7 and 58 (g).

§ 149. In former times invading armies frequently used to burn and fire all enemy property they could not make use of or carry away. Afterwards, when the practice of warfare grew milder, belligerents in strict law retained the right to destroy enemy pro

It is strange to observe that
Kriegsgebrauch, pp. 61-63, does

not mention the Hague Regulations at all.

perty according to discretion, although they did, as
a rule, no longer make use of such right. Nowa-
days, however, this right is obsolete. For in the
nineteenth century it became a generally and uni-
versally recognised rule of International Law that all
useless and wanton destruction of enemy property,
be it public or private, is absolutely prohibited.
And this rule has now expressly been enacted by
article 23 (letter g) of the Hague Regulations,
where it is categorically enacted that it is prohibited
"to destroy
enemy's property, unless such
destruction
be imperatively demanded by

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tion for

Offence

Defence

the necessities of war." § 150. All destruction and damage of enemy Destrucproperty in the interest of offence and defence is the necessary destruction and damaging, and therefore purpose of lawful. It is not only permissible to destroy and and damage all kinds of enemy property on the battlefield during battle, but also in preparation of battle and of expected siege. To strengthen a defensive position a house may be destroyed or damaged. To cover the retreat of an army a village on the battlefield may be fired. The district around an enemy fortress held by a belligerent may be razed, and, therefore, all private and public buildings, all vegetation may be destroyed, and all bridges blown up within a certain area. If a farm, a village, or even a town is not to be abandoned but prepared for defence, it may be necessary to commit all sorts of destruction and damage of private and public property. Further, if and where a bombardment is lawful, all destruction of property involved in it becomes likewise lawful. When a belligerent force gets hold of an enemy factory for ammunition or provisions for the enemy troops, and if it is not

Destruc

tion in

recon

noitring, and con

ducting

certain that they can hold it against an attack, they may at least destroy the plant, if not the buildings. Or if a force occupies an enemy fortress, they may raze the fortifications. Even a force intrenching themselves on a battlefield may be obliged to commit destruction of all sorts.

$151. Destruction of enemy property in marching marching, troops, conducting military transport, and in reconnoitring, is likewise lawful if unavoidable. A reconnoitring party need not keep on the road if Transport. they can better serve their purpose by riding across the tilled fields. And troops may be marched and transport may be conducted over crops when necessary. A humane commander will not easily allow his troops and transport to march and ride over tilled fields and crops. But if the purpose of war necessitates it he is justified in doing so.

Destruction of Arms,

tion, and

Provisions.

§ 152. Whatever enemy property a belligerent can appropriate he can likewise destroy. To prevent Ammuni- the enemy from making use of them a retreating force can destroy arms, ammunition, provisions, and the like, which they have taken from the enemy or requisitioned and cannot carry away. But it must be specially observed that they cannot destroy provisions in possession of private enemy inhabitants to prevent the enemy from making future use of them.

Destruc

tion of

§ 153. All destruction of and damage to historical Historical monuments, works of art and science, buildings for charitable, educational, and religious purposes are Works of specially prohibited by article 56 of the Hague

Monu

ments,

Art, and the like.

It is of importance to state the fact, that according to Grotius (III. c. 5, §§ 2 and 3), destruction of graves, churches, arms, and the like is not prohibited by the Law

1

of Nations, although he strongly (III. c. 12, §§ 5-7) advises to spare them unless their preservation is dangerous to the interests of the invader.

Regulations. But it must be emphasised that these objects enjoy this protection during military occupation only of enemy territory. Should a battle be waged around an historical monument in the open ground, should a church, a school or a museum be defended and attacked during military operations, these otherwise protected objects may be destroyed and damaged under the same conditions as other enemy property.

Devasta

§ 154. The question must, lastly, be taken into General consideration whether and under what conditions tion. general devastation of a locality, be it a town or a larger part of enemy territory, is permitted. There cannot be the slightest doubt that such devastation is as a rule absolutely prohibited and exceptionally only permitted when, to use the words of article 23 (g) of the Hague Regulations, it is "6 imperatively demanded by the necessities of war." It is, however, impossible to define once for all the circumstances which make a general devastation necessary, since everything depends upon the merits of the special case. But the fact that a general

66

devastation can be lawful must be admitted. And it is, for instance, lawful in case of a levy en masse on already occupied territory, when self-preservation obliges a belligerent to take refuge in the most severe measures. It is, to give another example, further lawful when, after the defeat of his main forces and occupation of his territory, an enemy disperses his remaining forces into small bands which carry on guerilla tactics and receive food and information, so that there is no hope of ending the war except by a general devastation which cuts off supplies of every kind from the guerilla bands. But it must be emphasised that only imperative necessity and the fact

that there is no better and less severe way open to a belligerent justify general devastation.1

Be that as it may, whenever a belligerent resorts to general devastation he ought, if possible, to make some provision for the unfortunate peaceful part of the population of the devastated tract of territory. It would be more humane to take them away into captivity instead of letting them perish on the spot. The practice, resorted to during the South African war, to house the victims of devastation in concentration camps, must be approved. The purpose of war may even oblige a belligerent to confine a population forcibly 2 in concentration camps.

Assault,
Siege, and

ment,

IX

ASSAULT, SIEGE, AND BOMBARDMENT

Vattel, III. §§ 168-170-Hall, § 186-Halleck, II. pp. 59, 67, 185— Taylor, $$ 483-485-Bluntschli, §§ 552-554B-Heffter, § 125Lueder in Holtzendorff, IV. pp. 448-457-G. F. Martens, II. § 286 ---Ullmann, § 153-Bonfils, Nos. 1079-1087-Despagnet, Nos. 531537-Pradier-Fodéré, VI. Nos. 2779-2786-Rivier, II. pp. 284-288 —Calvo, IV. §§ 2067-2095—Fiore, III. Nos. 1322-1330-Longuet, $$ 58-59-Mérignhac, pp. 171-182-Pillet, pp. 101-112-Kriegsgebrauch, pp. 18-22-Holland, War, Nos. 59-62-Rolin-Jaequemyns in R.I., II. (1870) pp. 659 and 674, III. (1871) pp. 297–307.

155. Assault is the rush of an armed force upon Bombard- enemy forces in the battlefield, or upon intrenchments, fortifications, habitations, villages or towns, such rushing force committing every violence against opposing persons and destroying all impediments.

when

lawful.

See Hall, § 186, who gives in nuce a good survey of the doctrine and practice of general devastation from Grotius down to

the beginning of the nineteenth century.

2 See above, § 116.

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