Origins and Evolution of the European Communities

Abstract

Although its historical antecedents have been traced back as far as the Roman Empire, the movement to integrate Europe politically and economically took con temporary form during the second World War when resistance groups proposed plans to avoid future wars by federating Europe. Early postwar efforts at consultative federation, like the Council of Europe, failed to create a supranational authority. In 1950, Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman pro posed the formation of the European Coal and Steel Com munity, which was the predecessor of the European Eco nomic Community, or Common Market, and Euratom. By 1968 the Common Market had achieved its goal of creating a customs union of its six members, protected by a common external tariff, and common policies for such sectors as agri culture were introduced. Many Communitywide organiza tions helped create widespread commitment to cooperative action in the economic sphere. Great increases in produc tion and trade were recorded by all six members during the 1960s and early 1970s. Moves toward closer political integra tion were not successful, however, largely due to the pressure of French President Charles de Gaulle who, in 1965-66, blocked plans for increasing the powers of the E.E.C. Com mission and the European Parliament. As a result, European public opinion, while respecting the economic benefits gained from E.E.C., became increasingly disinterested in the possibility that the Community might eventually become a United States of Europe.