The Law of Nations was so influential in early America that it helped shape how leaders like George Washington and other founders thought about neutrality and the legal status of the new republic; Vattel’s arguments were later cited in early U.S. legal and diplomatic discussions about sovereignty and the rights of small nations among great powers.
Even more intriguing, the very copy Washington borrowed likely reflected his immediate concerns in 1789 as he navigated fragile relations with Britain, France, and Spain, meaning the “overdue” book was not just a curiosity but part of the intellectual toolkit guiding the young United States’ first steps in international law and statecraft.
