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The Foundations of Europe

European Integration Ideas in France, Germany and Britain in the 1950s

  • Book
  • © 2006

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Authors:
  1. Thomas Hörber
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  • European Integration Ideas in France, Germany and Britain in the 1950s

Part of the book series: Forschungen zur Europäischen Integration (FOEI)

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Table of contents (6 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages 1-14
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    Pages 15-36

  3. France

    Pages 37-133

  4. Germany

    Pages 134-225

  5. Britain

    Pages 226-324

  6. Conclusions

    Pages 325-347

  7. Bibliography

    Pages 348-356
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Keywords

About this book

The 1950s can reasonably be called the foundation period of Europe. At the start of the decade pioneering institutions such as the OEEC, the Council of Europe and NATO were already in place. By the end of the 1950s all the major European communities, the ECSC, the EEC and Euratom had been established. 1954 saw a serious crisis for European integration when the European Defence Community treaty was rejected. The replacement in West European Union gave new impetus to European cooperation and new hope for full British involvement. Nevertheless, throughout the decade, it was not at all clear that European integration would be a success, particularly with Britain outside and a colonial alternative open to France, too. ^ One reason for focusing on the early integration period must, therefore, be seen in the wide divergence between Britain, France and Germany with regard to their concept for Europe. Britain's accession to the ECs in 1973 marked the end of the fundamental disaccord whether European integration should happen at all, notwithstanding the continued existence of greatly different opinions on the shape and the way cooperation should take. Not so earlier in the 1950s; British intergov­ ernmental preference and the continental European supranational choice, could not be reconciled and kept Britain away. The supranational aspiration survived, even with de Gaulle in power.

Reviews

"[...] die durch diese Studie erstmalig erfolgte umfassende Analyse der damaligen Parlamentsdebatten [ist] auch über den reinen historischen Erkenntnisgewinn lohnend - führt sie uns doch klar vor Augen, dass europäische Integration stets mehr als nur eine Reihe von nicht-öffentlichen Regierungs- und Ministerialverhandlungen sein kann und muss." www.vorwaerts.de, 05.06.2007

About the author

Dr. Thomas Hörber is Lecturer in History and Political Science at the University of Victoria, Canada.

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