Maritime laws of Portugal.-Laws of Antwerp.

ARTICLE XVIII.

Of the Laws of Portugal.

§ 1. THE maritime laws of Portugal, are nearly the same with those of Spain, to which, as a part of that kingdom, it was a long time subject. The Portuguese however, have some particular ordinances of their ancient sovereigns, which were afterwards confirmed by John of Braganza, on his coming to the throne, at the time of the revolution, the history of which is universally known.

ARTICLE XIX.

Of the Laws of Antwerp.

§ 1. IN former times the city of Antwerp was greatly celebrated for the magnitude, and extent of its commerce. Assurances formed an important branch of its maritime contracts, in the best days of that commercial city. The immense extent of its commercial operations and navigation gave rise, under the dukes of Burgundy, to the first laws worthy of attention on the subject of assurance. Philip IId, king of Spain, in 1563, added some ordinances concerning wrecks, jettisons, averages, and other objects relative to navigation, all of which have been copied into the marine ordinance of France.*

* In Us et Coutumes de la Mer, by Cleirac, p. 295 to 302, we find the ordinances of Philip II, relative to assurances for the exchange at Antwerp, in 20 articles, published at Brussels, the last day of October, 1593.....T.

Destruction of the commerce of Antwerp.-Laws of Sweden.

2. The power of this city has been destroyed by one of those revolutions which transfer commerce and the arts from one nation to another. When the Dutch made themselves masters of the navigation of the Scheldt, this city lost, in a great measure, its commercial activity, and its laws are no longer known, since they are no longer supported by that flourishing commerce and navigation, which first gave rise to them.

ARTICLE XX.

Of the Laws of Sweden.

§ 1. IN 1608, and 1618, Sweden published some regulations for the merchant-marine. A collection of laws has also been made under the title of Legisterium Sueciæ. This collection has been learnedly commented upon by John Loccenius. (369) It has been enlarged since that time by a general marine ordinance published by Charles XI, in 1667, to which was added, on the 20th of October, 1750, an

(369) Joannis Loccenii, de jure maritimo. This work has just been translated into French by M. Bonnemart, a learned lawyer, with very interesting notes. It will be published in a short time.*

Loccenius was a learned professor of law at Upsal in Sweden, about the year 1670. His book, de Jure Maritimo, does not profess to be a particular commentary on the laws of Sweden, but is a general and concise treatise on maritime law.....T.

Laws of Sweden.-Laws of Denmark.

ordinance relative to assurances, and averages, the greater part of which is taken from the marine ordinance of France, of 1681.

2. Sweden has also a regulation, relative to armed cruisers, of the 19th February, 1715, another of the 28th July, 1741; a declaration of the same regulation, of the 14th August, 1741; articles for the government of the naval forces, in 1755; and instructions for privateers, published the 1st of July, 1788.(370) The present war has induced the Swedish government to renew, on the 21st of January, 1804, its regulations concerning the navigation and commerce of its subjects, with the maritime powers, in time of war.

ARTICLE XXI.

Of the Laws of Denmark.

§ 1. THE maritime laws of Denmark, published by Christian V, are contained in the fourth book of the Code of the civil laws of that kingdom, entitled, Jus Danicum. There is also an ordinance concerning privateers, of the 5th April, 1710, confirmed by another of the 6th April, 1711.(371)

(370) Kluit. Hist. Fed. Belg. part 2, page 439, (371) Forord, Af Firid. IV, 1711, p. 23.

Ordinances of Denmark.-Laws of Russia.

2. Christian VI, on the 1st July, 1746, published his royal charter to the assurance company instituted at Copenhagen, which contains many wise regulations, on the subject of insurance, and on averages. A new royal ordinance of the 4th May, 1803, regulates the conduct, and ascertains the duties of merchants and seamen, belonging to the Danish dominions, in time of war between the maritime powers. A placard was afterwards published by the king, the 8th June, 1803, to modify the IXth regulation of that ordinance; another ordinance (372) appeared the 30th December in the same year, concerning the salvage of ships, and goods shipwrecked on the coasts of Holstein, or on the shores of the Danish provinces in Germany.(373)

ARTICLE XXII.

Of the Laws of Russia.

§ 1. THE sublime genius of Peter I, and his enterprising character, gave birth to a project unknown to his predecessors, that of taking a distinguished rank among the powers of Europe, though most of his dominions lay in Asia. Enlightened by the various observations made during his travels, in which he spent two years, in disguise, under the name of Michaelof, in the ship-yards of Amsterdam and England, where he learned the art of ship-building. In

(372) See Bibliotheque Commerciale, by M. Peuchet, 1803. (373) Bibliotheque Commerciale, 1803.

Great enterprises of Peter I.

structed by the counsels of men of merit assembled around him, Peter soon perceived, that, to obtain an influence in the affairs of Europe, it was necessary to open a vent into the Baltic for the numerous and rich productions of his vast empire, and, at the same time, to establish a military marine, that might make him known to the other European powers, and to give law to those of the North.

2. The inconsiderate war commenced against him by Charles XII of Sweden, who was beaten at Pultowa, the naval victory obtained over the Swedish admiral Ockrenskield, enabled the Czar to attain his first object. He penetrated through Ingria to the gulf of Finland, and soon after, in 1703, the superb city of Petersburg arose out of the marshes of the Neva, to become the capital of the Russian empire, destined one day to be ruler of the Baltic. He executed the difficult work of forming a junction between the two rivers, which, traversing his empire, open a course of more than eight hundred leagues from Petersburg to the Caspian sea, at the same time that he civilized the inhabitants of the arid deserts of Siberia. Peter having crushed Sweden, and subverted the power of Poland, laid the foundation of that grandeur and glory, which the nation of the Muscovites, a nation of barbarians at the close of the 17th century, has now attained.

3. Notwithstanding all these advantages, and the rich productions of his empire, the Czar did not discover the true system of encouraging the navigation of his subjects, by wise laws, and by the establishment