Historians enjoy speculating on the past. There is a certain satisfaction in showing that ideas and developments that are more generally deemed to be novel and radical have a longer history than is generally accepted. The longevity of ideas of humanitarian intervention is something that a number of chapters in this volume seek to demonstrate and the present contribution concentrates attention on the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. It considers how concern for oppressed peoples was articulated in the diplomatic and public discourse and practice of the period. Some of the techniques adopted and the problems faced have a surprisingly modern ring about them. This is not necessarily that surprising. Yet it is still worth recalling this history during discussions about the legitimacy or otherwise of humanitarian interventionism today.

Despite some of the similarities between the worlds of the eighteenth century and now, some substantial differences are apparent. The figures with whom this chapter is primarily concerned were very rarely motivated by a concern for common humanity.