Founding fathers of the European Union

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The Founding Fathers of the European Union are a number of men who have been recognised as making a major contribution to the development of European unity and what is now the European Union. There is no official list of founding fathers or a single event defining them so some ideas vary.

Europe's Founding Fathers

Strictly speaking, this name was given by the press and historiography to a group of seven politicians who played a key role in launching European construction:

• Konrad Adenauer (Germany)
• Joseph Bech (Luxembourg)
• Johan Willem Beyen (Netherlands)
• Alcide De Gasperi (Italy)
• Jean Monnet (France)
• Robert Schuman (France)
• Paul-Henri Spaak (Belgium)

Proposals and Rome

Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi (1894–1972) published the paneuropa manifesto in 1923 which set up the movement of that name. At the start of the 1950s Robert Schuman (1886–1963), based on a plan by Jean Monnet (1888–1979), called for a European Coal and Steel Community in his "Schuman declaration". Monnet went on to become the first president of the High Authority. Schuman later served as president of the European Parliament and became notable for advancing European integration.

Following on from its creation the Treaty of Rome established the European Economic Community. Although not all the people who signed the treaty are known as founding fathers, a number are such as Paul-Henri Spaak (1899–1972), who also worked on the treaty as well as the Benelux union and was the first President of the European Parliament. Other founding fathers who signed the treaty were Konrad Adenauer (1876–1967) of Germany and Joseph Bech (1887–1975) of Luxembourg.

Others

Further men who have been considered founding fathers are: Victor Hugo (1802–1885)who made a speech where he called for United States of Europe in 1849 at the International Peace Congress of Paris, Winston Churchill (1874–1965) made although speech in Zürich in 1946 where he brought the idea of a Council of Europe (set up a few years later). Alcide De Gasperi (1881–1954), who was the Italian Prime Minister and foreign minister during the creation of the ECSC and later became the second President of the European Parliament; Jacques Delors (born 1925), who was a successful Commission President in the 1980s and 90s; Sicco Mansholt (1908–1995), a Dutch minister and Commission President; Lorenzo Natali (1922–1989); Mário Soares (born 1924), Portuguese Prime Minister at the time Portugal acceeded the EC; Altiero Spinelli (1907–1986), an Italian active in the resistance and European federalists movement who became a prominent MEP and Commissioner; and Pierre Werner (1913–2002) a Prime Minister of Luxembourg.

See also

• History of the European Union
• President of the European Commission
• President of the European Parliament
• List of presidents of EU institutions