From the 17th century onwards, Britain played a leading role in asserting the application of the universality principle to international piracy, the first crime to which the principle applied. Thereafter, during the quest for abolition, it exercised universality over slave traders at sea. With the exercise of universal jurisdiction over atrocity crimes in the post-War period there was a notable shift in the UK position to the principle. This article traces the history of UK policy towards the application of the universality principle to atrocity crimes since wwii. Using archival research from the UK National Archives and the travaux préparatoires to international treaties, it analyses UK policy towards the inclusion of universal jurisdiction in international treaties concerning atrocity crimes. It argues that historically, the UK supported the application of the principle to atrocity crimes committed during an international armed conflict, as this position supported its interests. The nexus between universal jurisdiction and international armed conflict shielded colonial abuses from prosecution in foreign courts. Once the colonial period had come to an end, there was a shift in UK support for the inclusion of universal jurisdiction in international treaties, which is evident since the negotiation of uncat and the Rome Statute.

从 17 世纪起，英国在主张普遍性原则适用于国际海盗方面发挥了主导作用，这是该原则适用的第一个犯罪。此后，在寻求废除的过程中，它对海上奴隶贩子行使了普遍性。随着战后时期对暴行罪的普遍管辖权的行使，英国的立场发生了显着的转变。本文追溯了二战以来英国将普遍性原则应用于暴行罪的政策历史。使用来自英国国家档案馆和准备工作的档案研究对于国际条约，它分析了英国将普遍管辖权纳入有关暴行罪的国际条约的政策。它认为，从历史上看，英国支持将该原则应用于国际武装冲突期间犯下的暴行罪，因为这一立场支持其利益。普遍管辖权与国际武装冲突之间的联系使殖民滥用行为免受外国法院的起诉。殖民时期结束后，英国对将普遍管辖权纳入国际条约的支持发生了转变，这在《联合国禁止酷刑公约》和《罗马规约》的谈判中就很明显。