In the 18th century, the Dutch thinker Cornelius van Bynkershoek introduced the so-called "cannon shot rule," which helped to define this concept.  
This concept was prominently opposed by the Scottish thinker William Welwod, who relied on the authority of Scripture to argue that a well-known theoretical defense of this concept was merely a front for another country's attack on Scottish industry.  In the 18th century, the Dutch thinker Cornelius van Bynkershoek introduced the so-called "cannon shot rule," which helped to define this concept.  Another Dutch thinker, Dirk Graswinckel, critiqued the views on this concept which were set forth in a 1635 book which marked the first use of Arabic type in England.  While John Selden's contributions to the understanding of this concept are justly renowned, you may be more familiar with a book on this concept that opposed a certain Portuguese policy and defended the "Right Which Belongs to the Dutch to Take Part in the East Indian Trade."  That work, which takes its title from this concept, is by Hugo Grotius. For ten points, name this right of every nation to make commerce upon the waves.
This concept was prominently opposed by the Scottish thinker William Welwod, who relied on the authority of Scripture to argue that a well-known theoretical defense of this concept was merely a front for another country's attack on Scottish industry.  
{freedom} of the {seas} [accept {clear}-{knowledge} equivalents]