Who Is In and Who Is Out? Inclusion and Exclusion in European Conference Diplomacy, 1815–2015

How broad and deep should a plan for an international order be, for it to be both workable and stable? For centuries it had been an implicit assumption that Europe was a microcosm of the whole world, the reasoning head of a larger body. If a benevolent political order could be established on that continent, Europeans believed, it would then be reflected in the rest of the world, thanks to their colonies and commerce. Consequently, the European diplomatic tradition initially confined itself to maintaining peace in Europe rather than pursuing universal peace. This chapter examines the criteria for selecting which states were included in the conference diplomacy of the Old Continent and which were excluded. In general, the more inclusive the European system has become, the more stable and peaceful it has been.