Schuman Proposes Europe: The Birth of the EU
French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed pooling French and German coal and steel production under a joint high authority on May 9, 1950, in a declaration drafted largely by Jean Monnet. The idea was radical: coal and steel were the raw materials of war, and placing them under supranational control would make conflict between France and Germany "not merely unthinkable, but materially impossible." West Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg joined France in creating the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951. The ECSC evolved into the European Economic Community (1957), the European Community (1967), and finally the European Union (1993). May 9 is now celebrated as Europe Day. The EU now encompasses 27 member states and 450 million citizens.
May 9, 1950
76 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on May 9
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