The European Union is a geo-political entity covering a large portion of the European continent.
It is founded upon numerous treaties and has undergone expansions that have taken it from
6 member states to 28, a majority of states in Europe.
As distinct from ideas of federation, confederation or customs union the main development in Europe
depends on a supranational foundation to make war unthinkable and materially impossible
and reinforce democracy enunciated by Robert Schuman and other leaders in the Europe Declaration.
The principle was at the heart of the European Coal and Steel Community in the Treaty of
Paris, following the "Schuman Declaration" and the later the Treaties of Rome establishing
the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community.
Both the ECSC and EEC were later incorporated into the European Union while the EAEC maintains
a distinct legal identity despite sharing members and institutions.
Pre-1945: Idea of Europe
Large areas of Europe had previously been united by empires built on force, such as
the Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire, Frankish Empire, Holy Roman Empire, Ottoman Empire,
the First French Empire and Greater German Reich.
A peaceful means of some consolidation of European territories used to be provided by
dynastic unions; less common were country-level unions, such as the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
and Austro-Hungarian Empire.
In the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle of 1818, Tsar Alexander, as the most advanced internationalist
of the day, suggested a kind of permanent European union and even proposed the maintenance
of international military forces to provide recognised states with support against changes
by violence.
Largely due to the devastating effects of war many people turned to the idea of some
form of unified Europe, notably William Penn, Abbot Charles de Saint-Pierre, Victor Hugo,
Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi and Giuseppe Mazzini.
Such ideas became greater in Europe following World War I, with the massive loss of life
it entailed, but it was not until after World War II that real steps were taken.
An example of an organisation formed to promote the association of states between the wars
to promote the idea of European union is the Pan-Europa movement.
1945–1957: From The European Coal and Steel Community to the Treaties of Rome
World War II from 1939 to 1945 saw a human and economic cost which hit Europe hardest.
It demonstrated the horrors of war and also of extremism, through the Holocaust and the
atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, for example.
Once again, there was a desire to ensure it could never happen again, particularly with
the war giving the world nuclear weapons.
Most European countries failed to maintain their Great power status leaving two rival
ideologically opposed superpowers.
However, the exception was the USSR, which became a superpower after World War II and
maintained the status for 45 years.
To ensure Germany could never threaten the peace again, its heavy industry was partly
dismantled and its main coal-producing regions were detached, or put under international
control.
With statements such as Winston Churchill's 1946 call for a "United States of Europe"
becoming louder, the Council of Europe was established in 1949 as the first pan-European
organisation.
In the year following, on 9 May 1950, the French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed
a community to integrate the coal and steel industries of Europe – these being the two
elements necessary to make weapons of war..
On the basis of that speech, France, Italy, the Benelux countries together with West Germany
signed the Treaty of Paris creating the European Coal and Steel Community the following year;
this took over the role of the International Authority for the Ruhr[1] and lifted some
restrictions on German industrial productivity.
It gave birth to the first institutions, such as the High Authority and the Common Assembly.
The first presidents of those institutions were Jean Monnet and Paul-Henri Spaak respectively.
The attempt to turn the Saar protectorate into a "European territory" was rejected by
a referendum in 1955.
The Saar was to have been governed by a statute supervised by a European Commissioner reporting
to the Council of Ministers of the Western European Union.
After failed attempts at creating defence and political communities, leaders met at
the Messina Conference and established the Spaak Committee which produced the Spaak report.
The report was accepted at the Venice Conference where the decision was taken to organise an
Intergovernmental Conference.
The Intergovernmental Conference on the Common Market and Euratom focused on economic unity,
leading to the Treaties of Rome being signed in 1957 which established the European Economic
Community and the European Atomic Energy Community among the members.
1958–1972: Three communities
The two new communities were created separately from ECSC, although they shared the same courts
and the Common Assembly.
The executives of the new communities were called Commissions, as opposed to the "High
Authority".
The EEC was headed by Walter Hallstein and Euratom was headed by Louis Armand and then
Etienne Hirsch.
Euratom would integrate sectors in nuclear energy while the EEC would develop a customs
union between members.
Throughout the 1960s tensions began to show with France seeking to limit supranational
power and rejecting the membership of the United Kingdom.
However, in 1965 an agreement was reached to merge the three communities under a single
set of institutions, and hence the Merger Treaty was signed in Brussels and came into
force on 1 July 1967 creating the European Communities.
Jean Rey presided over the first merged Commission.
1973–1993: Enlargement to Delors
After much negotiation, and following a change in the French Presidency, Denmark, Ireland
and the United Kingdom eventually joined the European Communities on 1 January 1973.
This was the first of several enlargements which become a major policy area of the Union.
In 1979, the European Parliament held its first direct elections by universal suffrage.
410 members were elected, who then elected the first female President of the European
Parliament, Simone Veil.
A further enlargement took place in 1981 with Greece joining on 1 January, six years after
applying.
In 1985, Greenland voted to leave the Community after gaining home rule from Denmark.
Spain and Portugal joined on 1 January 1986 in the third enlargement.
Recently appointed Commission President Jacques Delors presided over the adoption of the European
flag by the Communities in 1986.
In the first major revision of the treaties since the Merger Treaty, leaders signed the
Single European Act in February 1986.
The text dealt with institutional reform, including extension of community powers – in
particular in regarding foreign policy.
It was a major component in completing the single market and came into force on 1 July
1987.
In 1987 Turkey formally applied to join the Community and began the longest application
process for any country.
In Central Europe, after 1988 Polish strikes and Polish Round Table Agreement in 1989,
the Berlin Wall fell, along with the Iron curtain.
Germany reunified and the door to enlargement to the former eastern bloc was opened.
With a wave of new enlargements on the way, the Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February
1992 which established the European Union when it came into force the following year.
1993–2004: Creation
On 1 November 1993, under the third Delors Commission, the Maastricht Treaty became effective,
creating the European Union with its pillar system, including foreign and home affairs
alongside the European Community.
The 1994 European elections were held resulting in the Socialist group maintaining their position
as the largest party in Parliament.
The Council proposed Jacques Santer as Commission President but he was seen as a second choice
candidate, undermining his position.
Parliament narrowly approved Santer but his commission gained greater support, being approved
by 416 votes to 103.
Santer had to use his new powers under Maastricht to flex greater control over his choice of
Commissioners.
They took office on 23 January 1995.
On 30 March 1994, accession negotiations concluded with Austria, Sweden and Finland.
Meanwhile Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein joined the European Economic Area, an organisation
that allowed European Free Trade Association states to enter the Single European Market.
The following year, the Schengen Agreement came into force between seven members, expanding
to include nearly all others by the end of 1996.
The 1990s also saw the further development of the euro. 1 January 1994 saw the second
stage of the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union begin with the establishment
of the European Monetary Institute and at the start of 1999 the euro as a currency was
launched and the European Central Bank was established.
On 1 January 2002, notes and coins were put into circulation, replacing the old currencies
entirely.
During the 1990s, the conflicts in the Balkans gave impetus to developing the EU's Common
Foreign and Security Policy.
The EU failed to react during the beginning of the conflict, and UN peacekeepers from
the Netherlands failed to prevent the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest
mass murder in Europe since the second world war.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization finally had to intervene in the war, forcing the combatants
to the negotiation table.
The early foreign policy experience of the EU led to foreign policy being emphasised
in the Treaty of Amsterdam.
However, any success was overshadowed by the budget crisis in March 1999.
The Parliament refused to approve the Commission's 1996 community's budget on grounds of financial
mismanagement, fraud and nepotism.
With Parliament ready to throw them out, the entire Santer Commission resigned.
The post-Delors mood of euroscepticism became entrenched with the Council and Parliament
constantly challenging the Commission's position in coming years.
In the following elections, the Socialists lost their decades old majority to the new
People's Party and the incoming Prodi Commission was quick to establish the new European Anti-fraud
Office.
Under the new powers of the Amsterdam Treaty, Prodi was described by some as the 'First
Prime Minister of Europe'.
On 4 June, Javier Solana was appointed Secretary General of the Council and the strengthened
High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy admitted the intervention
in Kosovo – Solana was also seen by some as Europe's first Foreign Minister.
The Nice Treaty was signed on 26 February 2001 and entered into force on 1 February
2003 which made the final preparations before the 2004 enlargement to 10 new members.
2004–present: Recent history
On the 10–13 June 2004, the 25 member states participated in the largest trans-national
election in history.
The result of the sixth Parliamentary election was a second victory for the European People's
Party-European Democrats group.
It also saw the lowest voter turnout of 45.5%, the second time it had fallen below 50%.
On 22 July 2004, José Manuel Barroso was approved by the new Parliament as the next
Commission President.
However, his new team of 25 Commissioners faced a tougher road.
With Parliament raising objections to a number of his candidates he was forced to withdraw
his selection and try once more.
The Prodi Commission had to extend their mandate to the 22 November after the new line up of
Commissioners was finally approved.
A proposed constitutional treaty was signed by plenipotentiaries from EU member states
on 28 October 2004.
The document was ratified in most member states, including two positive referendums.
The referendums that were held in France and the Netherlands failed however, killing off
the treaty.
The European Council agreed that the constitution proposal would be abandoned, but most of its
changes would be retained in an amending treaty.
On 13 December 2007 the treaty was signed, containing opt-outs for the more eurosceptic
members and no state-like elements.
The Lisbon treaty finally came into force on 1 December 2009.
It created the post of President of the European Council and significantly expanded the post
of High Representative.
After much debate about what kind of person should be President, the European Council
agreed on a low-key personality and chose Herman Van Rompuy while foreign policy-novice
Catherine Ashton became High Representative.
The 2009 elections again saw a victory for the European People's Party, despite losing
the British Conservatives who formed a smaller eurosceptic grouping with other anti-federalist
right wing parties.
Parliament's presidency was once again divided between the People's Party and the Socialists,
with Jerzy Buzek elected as the first President of the European Parliament from an ex-communist
country.
Barroso was nominated by the Council for a second term and received backing from EPP
who had declared him as their candidate before the elections.
However, the Socialists and Greens led the opposition against him despite not agreeing
on an opposing candidate.
Parliament finally approved Barroso II, though once more several months behind schedule.
In 2007, the fifth enlargement completed with the accession of Romania and Bulgaria on 1
January 2007.
Also, in 2007 Slovenia adopted the euro, Malta and Cyprus in 2008 and Slovakia in 2009.
However trouble developed with existing members as the eurozone entered its first recession
in 2008.
Members cooperated and the ECB intervened to help restore economic growth and the euro
was seen as a safe haven, particularly by those outside such as Iceland.
However, with the risk of a default in Greece, Ireland, Portugal and other members in late
2009–10, eurozone leaders agreed to provisions for loans to member states who could not raise
funds.
Accusations that this was a u-turn on the EU treaties, which rule out any bail out of
a euro member in order to encourage them to manage their finances better, were countered
by the argument that these were loans, not grants, and that neither the EU nor other
Member States assumed any liabilities for the debts of the aided countries.
With Greece struggling to restore its finances, other member states also at risk and the repercussions
this would have on the rest of the eurozone economy, a loan mechanism was agreed.
The crisis also spurred consensus for further economic integration and a range of proposals
such as a European Monetary Fund or federal treasury.
The European Union received the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize for having "contributed to the
advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe."
The Nobel Committee stated that "that dreadful suffering in World War II demonstrated the
need for a new Europe [...] today war between Germany and France is unthinkable.
This shows how, through well-aimed efforts and by building up mutual confidence, historical
enemies can become close partners."
The Nobel Committee's decision was subject to considerable criticism.
On 1 July 2013, Croatia joined the EU, and on 1 January 2014 the French Indian Ocean
territory of Mayotte was added as an outermost region.
See also Timeline of European Union history
Enlargement of the European Union History of the euro
List of European Councils List of presidents of the institutions of
the European Union Founding fathers of the European Union
History of the European Union in Brussels History of the location of EU institutions
History of Europe Centre virtuel de la connaissance sur l'Europe
Multimedia source collections on EU History Wider European history between the World War
II and the fall of Communism in Europe 1945–1992 End of World War II in Europe
Cold War Revolutions of 1989
German reunification Breakup of Yugoslavia
Wider European history after the creation of the European Union
Maastricht Treaty History of the European Union
History of the European Union Eurozone
Montenegrin independence referendum, 2006 2008 Kosovo declaration of independence from
Serbia European sovereign-debt crisis
References
External links History of the EU Official Europa website
CLIOH-WORLD CLIOH-WORLD: Network of Universities supported by the European Commission for the
researching, teaching and learning of the history of the EU, including History of EU
Integration, EU-Turkey dialogue, and linking to world history.
An Outline of the Emergence of the European Union