William Penn published his Essay towards the Present and Future Peace of Europe in 1693. John Bellers's Some Reasons for an European State appeared in 1710. Charles Francois Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre first gave his Perpetual Peace to the world in 1712; he devoted the next twenty-five years to making his plan more elaborate in some books and to attempting to summarize it in others. Crucé apart, these men were the authors of the first proposals of modern times for establishing an international organisation whose primary object was the maintenance of peace.

There was nothing essentially new in their writings. None of them had heard of Crucé but all were directly influenced by Sully, as is shown by the full titles and the texts of their books; and they did little more than reproduce that part of the ‘Grand Design’ which, influenced by ideas like Crucé's, had sprung from a genuine interest in achieving peace. Nevertheless, they neglected―did not notice, indeed―that part of Sully's thought which had been inspired by traditional political aims. And with their reversion to Crucé's attitude after an interval of years the new approach was at last finally established. After the beginning of the eighteenth century it remained possible―if unusual―for men to suggest that international peace might be obtained by other means than international organisation.