Maïa Pal, a Senior Lecturer in International Relations at Oxford Brookes University, brings her expertise on early modern empires and international law to the discussion. They explore the interplay between law, empire, and capital, emphasizing the pivotal role of consuls and diplomats in the Mediterranean and Atlantic. The conversation dives into extraterritoriality, challenging conventional views on state and capitalism dynamics. Pal also connects historical jurisdiction to modern digital infrastructure, revealing how past practices shape today's economic power structures.
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insights INSIGHT
Jurisdictional Accumulation Defined
Jurisdictional accumulation is a novel concept linking law, empire, and capital in early modern history.
It captures how empires assert power by gaining jurisdictional rights indirectly related to economic gain.
insights INSIGHT
Historical Sociology Methodology
Historical sociology blends history and sociology to analyze long-term social and political patterns.
Maïa Pal uses this method to explore international law's development within capitalism and empire.
insights INSIGHT
Jurisdiction vs. Law
Jurisdiction differs from law by focusing on rights and authority exercised by empires and sub-sovereign actors.
This helps understand imperial power beyond simple economic or political terms.
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An Early Modern History of Law, Empires, and Capital
Maïa Pal
Maïa Pal's "Jurisdictional Accumulation" offers a novel perspective on imperial expansion in the early modern period. The book challenges traditional narratives by focusing on the legal and jurisdictional practices employed by various empires. Pal introduces the concept of 'jurisdictional accumulation,' analyzing how different empires—Castilian, French, Dutch, and British—extended their power and influence. The study incorporates archival research, theoretical frameworks, and legal analyses to provide a multidisciplinary approach to understanding the interplay between law, capital, and imperial authority. The book's detailed case studies and insightful analysis make it a significant contribution to the fields of history, political science, and international relations.
With rigorous attention to history and empire, Maïa Pal's Jurisdictional Accumulation: An Early Modern History of Law, Empires, and Capital (Cambridge UP, 2020) is a unique analysis of imperial expansion. Through an analysis of ambassadors and consuls in the Mediterranean—and attention to Castilian, French, Dutch, and British empires—Pal's multifaceted conceptualization of jurisdictional analysis gathers together law and capital in the early modern period. A compelling application of political Marxist frameworks, Jurisdictional Accumulation is a multidisciplinary approach to thinking through extraterritoriality and its implications.
Through archival work, theorization, and legal analyses, Pal offers us a novel way to better understand the links between capital, law, and imperial authority.
Dr. Maïa Pal is a Senior Lecturer in International Relations at Oxford Brookes University. Her research brings together international relations theory, international political economy, and histories of international law, and focuses on early modern overseas consuls, imperialism, and empire. Rine Vieth is an FRQSC Postdoctoral Fellow at Université Laval. Interested in how people experience state legal regimes, their research centres around questions of law, migration, gender, and religion.
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