The Trial of the Kaiser
William A. Schabas
Reviews and Awards
"Schabas's book is a meticulously researched, grippingly written, important work." - Ziv Bohrer, Israel Law Review
"the author's style carries readers enjoyably along. But his real achievement lies in the books carefully organized and meticulously documented substance. Its 18 chapters strike a successful balance between following the history of the project of trying the Kaiser and analysing the issues it had to confront, legal as well as political." - David Bentley, International Affairs
"Published during the attempted trial's ongoing centennial, the book offers a comprehensive account of its political and legal history. It is skillfully researched, commanding a range of sources that makes possible the telling of what amounts to a global tale of international politics and law. ... overall the book succeeds in telling the story in enough particulars to satisfy scholars, while still being accessible to a general reader." - Arshan Barzani, Lawfare
"Professor Schabas explores the whole question of a trial with erudition and discrimination. His book will be of special interest to lawyers and students of international law, but it is written with the general reader in mind too. Its lucidity and good sense make it an attractive and always interesting work of scholarship." - Allan Massie, Catholic Herald
"Not many authors can write a compelling book about an event that never happened. Yet, William Schabas has done exactly that ,,, The Trial of the Kaiser is meticulously researched and brings gripping insight to the origins of international criminal justice, unearthing the roots of today's codified and customary international criminal and humanitarian law. It recounts the history of the very first time world leaders and international lawyers began contemplating an international criminal tribunal. Moreover, the book resonates with modern parallels by touching on fundamental issues that still fuel debate among scholars and nations." - Dr. Mark Ellis, Los Angeles Review of Books
"Schabas has done meticulous research among the unpublished archival records of this titanic legal struggle." - Isabel V. Hull, New York Review of Books
"terrifically readable ... Schabas, a leading authority on international criminal law ... has produced a thorough and engaging account of the ambitious - if confused and ultimately abortive - attempt to bring the German Emperor to trial." - Lawrence R. Douglas, Times Literary Supplement
"It seeks and succeeds in charting a historic process. It picks its way delicately through the issues and the motivations of various countries. It is assured in place and time, with contemporary issues explained briskly and satisfactorily. ... In all this, it is a work of serious historic merit." - Hugh MacDonald, The Herald
"Professor Schabas' book on the thwarted attempt to bring Kaiser Wilhelm II before an international court after the Great War on charges of war crimes, combines erudition and a fast-pace narrative that one rarely finds in scholarly works of this nature. Schabas has a masterful grip on the extensive sources that underpin this study. Throughout the book there are insights and comparisons to the post-1945 period that will delight not just the lay reader interested in international criminal history, but also the specialist historian interested in the twists and turns of the legal arguments of the key players involved in war crimes trials. This is a book all can read and profit by." - Anthony McElligott, author of Weimar Germany (Oxford Short History of Germany)
"A fascinating readable account by a leading specialist in international criminal law." - Jus Gentium
