The Saint Petersburg Declaration of 1868 was the first international treaty to ban a class of weapons in warfare, founding modern humanitarian law.
Key Facts
- Date agreed
- November 29 / December 11, 1868
- Number of signatories
- 17 states
- Weapon banned
- Exploding projectiles under 400 grammes weight
- Preceded by
- First Geneva Convention (1864)
- Succeeded by
- Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The use of bullets designed to explode or ignite upon impact was considered excessively lethal and incompatible with the principles of civilized warfare. The International Military Commission, convened in Saint Petersburg under the auspices of the Imperial Cabinet of Russia, sought to address this concern by establishing a binding multilateral agreement among military powers.
On December 11, 1868 (New Style), seventeen signatory states adopted the Declaration Renouncing the Use, in Time of War, of Explosive Projectiles Under 400 Grammes Weight in Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire. The treaty outlawed exploding and incendiary bullets in conflicts between the signatories, though it expressly excluded colonial warfare and police actions from its scope.
The declaration is regarded as foundational to international humanitarian law, establishing the precedent that certain weapons could be prohibited by multilateral treaty. It directly influenced subsequent codification efforts, most notably the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907, which extended the regulation of the conduct of war considerably further.
Political Outcome
Seventeen states agreed to ban explosive projectiles under 400 grammes in warfare between signatories, establishing a landmark prohibition in international law.