Lecturer Bio
Benjamin B. Ferencz, Esq.
After he graduated from Harvard Law School in 1943, Ben Ferencz joined an anti-aircraft artillery battalion preparing for the invasion of France. As an enlisted man under General Patton, he fought in every campaign in Europe. As Nazi atrocities were uncovered, he was transferred to a newly created War Crimes Branch of the Army to gather evidence of Nazi brutality and apprehend the criminals. Ferencz became Chief Prosecutor for the United States in what the Associated Press called "the biggest murder trial in history."
His book Defining International Aggression-The Search for World Peace was published in 1975. It seemed to him that there was little sense in denouncing aggression, terrorism, and other crimes against humanity unless these offenses became part of an accepted international criminal code enforced by an international court. He wrote another two-volume documentary history, An International Criminal Court-A Step Toward World Peace, which was published in 1980. It was intended to be a tool that nations could use to build a structure for peace.
Benjamin Ferencz died on April 7th, 2023 at the age of 103. He dedicated his life to writing and speaking worldwide for international law and global peace.
