On 15 August 1905 the “Programme of the Competition for the Architectural Plan of the Peace Palace for the use of the Permanent Court of Arbitration with a Library” was sent out all over the world. The competition was open to all. On the closing day, 15 April 1906, no less than 216 plans had been submitted, covering a total of more than 3.000 drawings.

The third-prize winning design by F. Wendt of Charlottenburg, featuring ninety pillars towering above a somewhat 'impressed' dome. Wendt, the jury argued, had submitted a simple and straightforward design 'though and undesirable amount of space is given to vestibules and corridors. The exterior, though it exhibits a suitable dignity of character, is somewhat stiff and monotonous'. Here it is seen that the jury, besides being highly critical in its judgments and very succint in its argument - the total report amounts to some five pages, and this included the full list of plans - had not managed to escape some intrinsic controversy in wording as regards matters of the required 'simple dignity'. (Eyffinger, A.C.G.M., The Peace Palace: Residence for Justice, Domicile of Learning, The Hague, Carnegie Foundation, 1988, pag. 63-75)

(No. 132 Concordia parvae res crescunt, discordia maximae dilabuntur)

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• Eyffinger, A.C.G.M., The Peace Palace: Residence for Justice, Domicile of Learning, The Hague, Carnegie Foundation, 1988.
• Eyffinger, A.C.G.M., The Trusteeship of an Ideal: The Carnegie Foundation, Vignettes of a Century, Amsterdam, Enschedé, 2004.
• Peace Palace
• Peace Palace Centenary website
• Peace Palace Library > Image Collection > Prize Competition
• Peace Palace Library > Image Collection > Peace Palace Architecture