European Coal and Steel Community
Encyclopedia
The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was a six-nation international organisation serving to unify Western Europe during the Cold War
and create the foundation for the modern-day developments of the European Union. The ECSC was the first organisation to be based on the principles of supranationalism.
The ECSC was first proposed by French foreign minister
Robert Schuman
on 9 May 1950 as a way to prevent further war between France and Germany. He declared his aim was to "make war not only unthinkable but materially impossible." The means to do so, Europe's first supranational community, was formally established by the Treaty of Paris (1951)
, signed not only by France and West Germany, but also by Italy and the three Benelux
states: Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Between these states the ECSC would create a common market for coal and steel. The ECSC was governed by a "High Authority
", checked by bodies representing governments, MPs and an independent judiciary.
The ECSC was joined by two other similar communities in 1957, with whom it shared its membership and some institutions
. In 1967 all its institutions were merged with that of the European Economic Community
(EEC, which later became part of the European Union), but it retained its own independent identity. However in 2002 the Treaty of Paris expired, and with no desire to renew the treaty, all the ECSC activities and resources were absorbed by the European Community. During its existence, the ECSC had succeeded in creating a common market but could not prevent the decline of the coal and steel industries. It did however set the ground for the future European Union.
and Foreign Minister, Schuman was instrumental in turning French policy away from Gaullist policy of permanent occupation or control of parts of German territory such as the Ruhr
or the Saar
. Despite stiff ultra-nationalist, Gaullist and communist opposition, the French Assembly
voted a number of resolutions in favour of his new policy of integrating Germany into a community. The International Authority for the Ruhr
changed in consequence. Schuman's guiding principles were moral, based on the equality of states (international democracy), not power politics of domination.
of 9 May 1950 (later known as Europe Day
) occurred after two Cabinet meetings, the proposal became French government policy. France was thus the first government to agree to share and grow sovereignty in a supranational Community. That decision was based on a text, written and edited by Schuman's friend and colleague, the Foreign Ministry lawyer, Paul Reuter and with the assistance of Jean Monnet
and Schuman's Directeur de Cabinet, Bernard Clappier. It laid out a plan for a European Community to pool the coal and steel of its members in a common market.
Schuman proposed that "Franco-German production of coal and steel as a whole be placed under a common High Authority, within the framework of an organisation open to the participation of the other countries of Europe." Such an act was intended to help economic growth and cement peace between France and Germany, who were historic enemies
. Coal and steel were vital resources needed for a country to wage war, so pooling those resources between two such enemies was seen as more than symbolic. Schuman saw the decision of the French government on his proposal as the first example of a democratic and supranational Community, a new development in world history. The plan was also seen by some, like Monnet, who crossed out Reuter's mention of 'supranational' in the draft and inserted 'federation' as a first step to a "European federation
".
The Schuman Declaration
that created the ECSC had several distinct aims:
Firstly, it was intended to prevent further war between France and Germany and other States. by tackling the root cause of war. The ECSC was primarily conceived with France and Germany in mind: "The coming together of the nations of Europe requires the elimination of the age-old opposition of France and Germany. Any action taken must in the first place concern these two countries." The coal and steel industries being essential for the production of munitions, Schuman believed that by uniting these two industries across France and Germany under an innovative supranational system that also included a European anti-cartel
agency, he could "make war not only unthinkable but materially impossible." Schuman's had another aim: "With increased resources Europe will be able to pursue the achievement of one of its essential tasks, namely, the development of the African continent." Industrial cartels tended to impose "restrictive practices" on national markets, whereas the ECSC would ensure the increased production necessary for their ambitions in Africa.
, in spite of support from unions and other socialists in Europe, decided it would oppose the Schuman plan. Kurt Schumacher
's personal distrust of France, capitalism, and Konrad Adenauer
aside, he claimed that a focus on integrating with a "Little Europe of the Six" would override the SPD's prime objective of German re-unification and thus empower ultra-nationalist and Communist movements in the West. He also thought the ECSC would end any hopes of nationalising the steel industry and lock in a Europe of "cartels, clerics and conservatives." Younger members of the party like Carlo Schmid
, were, however, in favor of the Community and pointed to the long socialist support for the supranational idea.
In France, Schuman had gained strong political and intellectual support from all sections of the nation and many non-Communist parties. Notable amongst these were ministerial colleague Andre Philip
and Edouard Bonnefous, president of the Foreign Relations Committee, and former prime minister, Paul Reynaud
. Projects for a coal and steel authority and other supranational communities were formulated in specialist subcommittees of the Council of Europe in the period before it became French government policy. Charles de Gaulle
, who was then out of power, had been an early supporter of "linkages" between economies, on French terms, and had spoken of a "European confederation" that would exploit the resources of the Ruhr
in 1945. However, he opposed the ECSC as a faux (false) pooling ("le pool, ce faux semblant") because he considered it an unsatisfactory "piecemeal approach" to European unity and because he considered the French government "too weak" to dominate the ECSC as he thought proper. De Gaulle also felt that the ECSC had insufficient supranational authority because the Assembly was not ratified by a European referendum and he did not accept Raymond Aron
's contention that the ECSC was intended as a movement away from United States domination. Consequently, de Gaulle and his followers in the RPF
voted against ratification in the lower house of the French Parliament.
Despite these attacks and those from the extreme left, the ECSC found substantial public support and was established. It gained strong majority votes in all eleven chambers of the parliaments of the Six, as well as approval among associations and European public opinion. In 1950, many had thought another war was inevitable. The steel and coal interests, however, were quite vocal in their opposition. The Council of Europe, created by a proposal of Schuman's first government in May 1948, helped articulate European public opinion and gave the Community idea positive support.
, which established the ECSC, was signed on 18 April 1951 by "the inner six
": France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The ECSC was the first international organisation to be based on supranational principles and was, through the establishment of a common market for coal and steel, intended to expand the economies, increase employment, and raise the standard of living within the Community. The market was also intended to progressively rationalise the distribution of high level production whilst ensuring stability and employment. The common market for coal was opened on 10 February 1953, and for steel on 1 May 1953. Upon taking effect the ECSC gradually replaced the International Authority for the Ruhr
.
On 11 August 1952, the United States was the first non-ECSC member to recognise the Community and stated it would now deal with the ECSC on coal and steel matters, establishing its delegation in Brussels. Monnet responded by choosing Washington DC as the site of the ECSC's first external presence. The headline of the delegation's first bulletin read "Towards a Federal Government of Europe".
Six years after the Treaty of Paris, the Treaties of Rome were signed by the six ECSC members, creating the European Economic Community
(EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community
(EAEC or 'Euratom'). These Communities were based, with some adjustments, on the ECSC. The Treaties of Rome were to be in force indefinitely, unlike the Treaty of Paris, which was to expire after fifty years. These two new Communities worked on the creation of a customs union
and nuclear power
community respectively. The Rome treaties were hurried through just before de Gaulle was given emergency powers and proclaimed the Fifth Republic
. Despite his efforts to 'chloroform' the Communities, their fields rapidly expanded and the EEC became the most important tool for political unification, overshadowing the ECSC.
, the ECSC, EEC and Euratom initially shared the Common Assembly
and the European Court of Justice
, although the Councils
and the High Authority/Commissions
remained separate. To avoid duplication, the Merger Treaty
merged these separate bodies of the ECSC and Euratom with the EEC. The EEC later became one of the three pillars
of the present day European Union.
The Treaty of Paris was frequently amended as the EC and EU evolved and expanded
. With the treaty due to expire in 2002, debate began at the beginning of the 1990s on what to do with it. It was eventually decided that it should be left to expire. The areas covered by the ECSC's treaty were transferred to the Treaty of Rome
and the financial loose ends and the ECSC research fund were dealt with via a protocol of the Treaty of Nice
. The treaty finally expired on 23 July 2002. That day, the ECSC flag
was lowered for the final time outside the European Commission
in Brussels
and replaced with the EU flag.
The Treaty stated that the location of the institutions
would be decided by common accord of the members, yet the issue was hotly contested. As a temporary compromise, the institutions were provisionally located in the City of Luxembourg
, despite the Assembly being based in Strasbourg
.
The High Authority (the predecessor to the European Commission
) was a nine-member executive body which governed the community. France, Germany and Italy appointed two members each to the Authority and the three smaller members appointed one each. These eight members then themselves appointed a ninth person to be President of the High Authority
.
Despite being appointed by agreement of national governments acting together, the members were to pledge not to represent their national interest
, but rather took a oath to defend the general interests of the Community as a whole. Their independence was aided by members being barred from having any occupation outside the Authority or having any business interests (paid or unpaid) and for three years after they left office. To further ensure impartiality, one third of the membership was to be renewed every two years, (article 10).
The Authority's principle innovation was its supranational character. It had a broad area of competence to ensure the objectives of the treaty were met and that the common market functioned smoothly. The High Authority could issue three types of legal instruments: Decisions, which were entirely binding laws; Recommendations, which had binding aims but the methods were left to member states; and Opinions, which had no legal force.
Up to the merger in 1967, the authority had five Presidents followed by an interim President serving for the final days.
) was composed of 78 representatives and exercised supervisory powers over the executive High Authority. The Common Assembly representatives were to be national MPs delegated each year by their Parliaments to the Assembly, or directly elected 'by universal suffrage' (article 21). Though in practice it was the former as there was no requirement for elections until the Treaties of Rome and no actual election until 1979
as Rome required agreement in the Council on the electoral system first. However, to emphasise that the chamber was not a traditional international organisation composed of representatives of national governments, the Treaty of Paris used the term "representatives of the peoples". The Assembly was not originally specified in the Schuman Plan because it was hoped the Community would use the institutions (Assembly, Court) of the Council of Europe. When this became impossible because of British objections, separate institutions had to be created. The Assembly was intended as a democratic counter-weight and check to the High Authority, to advise but also to have power to sack the Authority for incompetence, injustice, corruption or fraud. The first President
(akin to a Speaker) was Paul-Henri Spaak
.
The Special Council of Ministers (equivalent to the current Council of the European Union
) was composed of representatives of national governments. The Presidency
was held by each state for a period of three months, rotating between them in alphabetical order. One of its key aspects was the harmonisation of the work of the High Authority and that of national governments, which were still responsible for the state's general economic policies. The Council was also required to issue opinions on certain areas of work of the High Authority. Issues relating only to coal and steel were in the exclusive domain of the High Authority and in these areas the Council (unlike the modern Council) could only act as a scrutiny on the Authority. However, areas outside coal and steel required the consent of the Council.
The Court of Justice was to ensure the observation of ECSC law along with the interpretation and application of the Treaty. The Court was composed of seven judges, appointed by common accord of the national governments for six years. There were no requirements that the judges had to be of a certain nationality, simply that they be qualified and that their independence be beyond doubt. The Court was assisted by two Advocates General.
The Consultative Committee (similar to the Economic and Social Committee
) had between 30 and 50 members equally divided between producers, workers, consumers and dealers in the coal and steel sector. Again, there was no national quotas and the treaty requires representatives of European associations to organise their own democratic procedures. They were to establish rules to make their membership fully 'representative' for democratic organised civil society. Members were appointed for two years and were not bound by any mandate or instruction of the organisations which appointed them. The Committee had a plenary assembly, bureau and a president. Again, the required democratic procedures were not introduced and nomination of these members remained in the hands of national ministers. The High Authority was obliged to consult the Committee in certain cases where it was appropriate and to keep it informed. The Consultative Committee remained separate (despite the merger of the other institutions) until 2002, when the Treaty expired and its duties were taken over by the Economic and Social Committee (ESC). Despite its independence, the Committee did cooperate with the ESC when they were consulted on the same issue.
Among the ECSC's greatest achievements are those on welfare issues. Some mines, for example were clearly unsustainable without government subsidies. Some miners had extremely poor housing. Over 15 years it financed 112,500 flats for workers, paying US$1,770 per flat, enabling workers to buy a home they could not have otherwise afforded. The ECSC also paid half the occupational redeployment costs of those workers who have lost their jobs as coal and steel facilities began to close down. Combined with regional redevelopment aid the ECSC spent $150 million creating 100,000 jobs, a third of which were for unemployed coal and steel workers. The welfare guarantees invented by the ECSC were extended to workers outside the coal and steel sector by some of its members.
Far more important than creating Europe's first social and regional policy, it is argued that the ECSC introduced European peace. It involved the continent's first European tax. This was a flat tax, a levy on production with a maximum rate of one percent. Given that the European Community countries are now experiencing the longest period of peace in more than two thousand years, this has been described as the cheapest tax for peace in history. Another world war, or 'world suicide' as Schuman called this threat in 1949, was avoided. In October 1953 Schuman said that the possibility of another European war had been eliminated. Reasoning had to prevail among member states.
However the ECSC failed to achieve several fundamental aims of the Treaty of Paris. It was hoped the ECSC would prevent a resurgence of large coal and steel groups such as the Konzerne, which helped Adolf Hitler
rise to power. In the Cold War trade-offs, the cartels and major companies re-emerged, leading to apparent price fixing
(another element that was meant to be tackled). With a democratic supervisory system the worst aspects of past abuse were avoided with the anti-cartel powers of the Authority, the first international anti-cartel agency in the world. Efficient firms were allowed to expand into a European market without undue domination. Oil, gas, electricity became natural competitors to coal and also broke cartel powers. Furthermore, with the move to oil, the Community failed to define a proper energy policy. The Euratom treaty was largely stifled by de Gaulle and the European governments refused the suggestion of an Energy Community involving electricity and other vectors that was suggested at Messina in 1955. In a time of high inflation and monetary instability ECSC also fell short of ensuring an upward equalisation of pay of workers within the market. These failures could be put down to overambition in a short period of time, or that the goals were merely political posturing to be ignored. It has been argued that the greatest achievements of the European Coal and Steel Community lie in its revolutionary democratic concepts of a supranational Community.
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
and create the foundation for the modern-day developments of the European Union. The ECSC was the first organisation to be based on the principles of supranationalism.
The ECSC was first proposed by French foreign minister
Minister of Foreign Affairs (France)
Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs ), is France's foreign affairs ministry, with the headquarters located on the Quai d'Orsay in Paris close to the National Assembly of France. The Minister of Foreign and European Affairs in the government of France is the cabinet minister responsible for...
Robert Schuman
Robert Schuman
Robert Schuman was a noted Luxembourgish-born French statesman. Schuman was a Christian Democrat and an independent political thinker and activist...
on 9 May 1950 as a way to prevent further war between France and Germany. He declared his aim was to "make war not only unthinkable but materially impossible." The means to do so, Europe's first supranational community, was formally established by the Treaty of Paris (1951)
Treaty of Paris (1951)
The Treaty of Paris was signed on 18 April 1951 between France, West Germany, Italy and the three Benelux countries , establishing the European Coal and Steel Community , which subsequently became part of the European Union...
, signed not only by France and West Germany, but also by Italy and the three Benelux
Benelux
The Benelux is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring countries, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. These countries are located in northwestern Europe between France and Germany...
states: Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Between these states the ECSC would create a common market for coal and steel. The ECSC was governed by a "High Authority
High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community
The High Authority was the executive branch of the former European Coal and Steel Community . It was created in 1951 and disbanded in 1967 when it was merged into the European Commission.-History:...
", checked by bodies representing governments, MPs and an independent judiciary.
The ECSC was joined by two other similar communities in 1957, with whom it shared its membership and some institutions
Institutions of the European Union
The European Union is governed by seven institutions. Article 13 of Treaty on European Union lists them in the following order: the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European...
. In 1967 all its institutions were merged with that of the European Economic Community
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
(EEC, which later became part of the European Union), but it retained its own independent identity. However in 2002 the Treaty of Paris expired, and with no desire to renew the treaty, all the ECSC activities and resources were absorbed by the European Community. During its existence, the ECSC had succeeded in creating a common market but could not prevent the decline of the coal and steel industries. It did however set the ground for the future European Union.
History
As Prime MinisterPrime Minister of France
The Prime Minister of France in the Fifth Republic is the head of government and of the Council of Ministers of France. The head of state is the President of the French Republic...
and Foreign Minister, Schuman was instrumental in turning French policy away from Gaullist policy of permanent occupation or control of parts of German territory such as the Ruhr
Ruhr
The Ruhr is a medium-size river in western Germany , a right tributary of the Rhine.-Description:The source of the Ruhr is near the town of Winterberg in the mountainous Sauerland region, at an elevation of approximately 2,200 feet...
or the Saar
Saar (protectorate)
The Saar Protectorate was a German borderland territory twice temporarily made a protectorate state. Since rejoining Germany the second time in 1957, it is the smallest Federal German Area State , the Saarland, not counting the city-states Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen...
. Despite stiff ultra-nationalist, Gaullist and communist opposition, the French Assembly
French National Assembly
The French National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of France under the Fifth Republic. The upper house is the Senate ....
voted a number of resolutions in favour of his new policy of integrating Germany into a community. The International Authority for the Ruhr
International Authority for the Ruhr
The International Authority for the Ruhr was an international body established in 1949 by the Allied powers to control the coal and steel industry of the Ruhr Area in West Germany....
changed in consequence. Schuman's guiding principles were moral, based on the equality of states (international democracy), not power politics of domination.
Schuman declaration
The Schuman DeclarationSchuman Declaration
The Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950 was a governmental proposal by then-French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman to create a new form of organization of States in Europe called a supranational Community. Following the experiences of two world wars, France recognized that certain values such as...
of 9 May 1950 (later known as Europe Day
Europe Day
In Europe, Europe Day is an annual celebration of peace and unity in Europe. There are two separate designations of Europe Day: 5 May for the Council of Europe, and 9 May for the European Union...
) occurred after two Cabinet meetings, the proposal became French government policy. France was thus the first government to agree to share and grow sovereignty in a supranational Community. That decision was based on a text, written and edited by Schuman's friend and colleague, the Foreign Ministry lawyer, Paul Reuter and with the assistance of Jean Monnet
Jean Monnet
Jean Omer Marie Gabriel Monnet was a French political economist and diplomat. He is regarded by many as a chief architect of European Unity and is regarded as one of its founding fathers...
and Schuman's Directeur de Cabinet, Bernard Clappier. It laid out a plan for a European Community to pool the coal and steel of its members in a common market.
Schuman proposed that "Franco-German production of coal and steel as a whole be placed under a common High Authority, within the framework of an organisation open to the participation of the other countries of Europe." Such an act was intended to help economic growth and cement peace between France and Germany, who were historic enemies
French-German enmity
French–German hereditary enmity is the idea of unavoidably hostile relations and mutual revanchism between Germany and France that became popular with the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871...
. Coal and steel were vital resources needed for a country to wage war, so pooling those resources between two such enemies was seen as more than symbolic. Schuman saw the decision of the French government on his proposal as the first example of a democratic and supranational Community, a new development in world history. The plan was also seen by some, like Monnet, who crossed out Reuter's mention of 'supranational' in the draft and inserted 'federation' as a first step to a "European federation
United States of Europe
Since the 1950s, European integration has seen the development of a supranational system of governance, as its institutions move further from the concept of simple intergovernmentalism. However, with the Maastricht Treaty of 1993, new intergovernmental elements have been introduced alongside the...
".
The Schuman Declaration
Schuman Declaration
The Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950 was a governmental proposal by then-French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman to create a new form of organization of States in Europe called a supranational Community. Following the experiences of two world wars, France recognized that certain values such as...
that created the ECSC had several distinct aims:
- It would mark the birth of a united Europe.
- It would make war between member states impossible.
- It would encourage world peace.
- It would transform Europe by a 'step by step' process (building through sectoral supranational communities) leading to the unification of Europe democratically, including both East and West Europe separated by the Iron CurtainIron CurtainThe concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological fighting and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1989...
. - It would create the world's first supranational institution and.
- It would create the world's first international anti-cartel agency.
- It would create a single market across the Community.
- It would, starting with the coal and steel sector, revitalise the whole European economy by similar community processes.
- It would improve the world economy and the developing countries, such as Africa.
Firstly, it was intended to prevent further war between France and Germany and other States. by tackling the root cause of war. The ECSC was primarily conceived with France and Germany in mind: "The coming together of the nations of Europe requires the elimination of the age-old opposition of France and Germany. Any action taken must in the first place concern these two countries." The coal and steel industries being essential for the production of munitions, Schuman believed that by uniting these two industries across France and Germany under an innovative supranational system that also included a European anti-cartel
Cartel
A cartel is a formal agreement among competing firms. It is a formal organization of producers and manufacturers that agree to fix prices, marketing, and production. Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve homogeneous products...
agency, he could "make war not only unthinkable but materially impossible." Schuman's had another aim: "With increased resources Europe will be able to pursue the achievement of one of its essential tasks, namely, the development of the African continent." Industrial cartels tended to impose "restrictive practices" on national markets, whereas the ECSC would ensure the increased production necessary for their ambitions in Africa.
Political pressures
In West Germany, Schuman kept the closest contacts with the new generation of democratic politicians. Karl Arnold, the Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, the province that included the coal and steel producing Ruhr, was initially spokesman for German foreign affairs. He gave a number of speeches and broadcasts on a supranational coal and steel community at the same time as Robert Schuman began to propose this Community in 1948 and 1949. The Social Democratic Party of GermanySocial Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
, in spite of support from unions and other socialists in Europe, decided it would oppose the Schuman plan. Kurt Schumacher
Kurt Schumacher
Dr. Kurt Schumacher , was chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1946 and first Leader of the Opposition in the West German Bundestag parliament from 1949 until his death...
's personal distrust of France, capitalism, and Konrad Adenauer
Konrad Adenauer
Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer was a German statesman. He was the chancellor of the West Germany from 1949 to 1963. He is widely recognised as a person who led his country from the ruins of World War II to a powerful and prosperous nation that had forged close relations with old enemies France,...
aside, he claimed that a focus on integrating with a "Little Europe of the Six" would override the SPD's prime objective of German re-unification and thus empower ultra-nationalist and Communist movements in the West. He also thought the ECSC would end any hopes of nationalising the steel industry and lock in a Europe of "cartels, clerics and conservatives." Younger members of the party like Carlo Schmid
Carlo Schmid (German politician)
Carlo Schmid was a German academic and politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .Schmid is one of the most important authors of both the German Basic Law and the Godesberg Program of the SPD...
, were, however, in favor of the Community and pointed to the long socialist support for the supranational idea.
In France, Schuman had gained strong political and intellectual support from all sections of the nation and many non-Communist parties. Notable amongst these were ministerial colleague Andre Philip
André Philip
André Philip was an SFIO who served as an Interior Minister for the Free French during the war. He also served as a finance minister in 1946 and part of 1947....
and Edouard Bonnefous, president of the Foreign Relations Committee, and former prime minister, Paul Reynaud
Paul Reynaud
Paul Reynaud was a French politician and lawyer prominent in the interwar period, noted for his stances on economic liberalism and militant opposition to Germany. He was the penultimate Prime Minister of the Third Republic and vice-president of the Democratic Republican Alliance center-right...
. Projects for a coal and steel authority and other supranational communities were formulated in specialist subcommittees of the Council of Europe in the period before it became French government policy. Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
, who was then out of power, had been an early supporter of "linkages" between economies, on French terms, and had spoken of a "European confederation" that would exploit the resources of the Ruhr
Ruhr
The Ruhr is a medium-size river in western Germany , a right tributary of the Rhine.-Description:The source of the Ruhr is near the town of Winterberg in the mountainous Sauerland region, at an elevation of approximately 2,200 feet...
in 1945. However, he opposed the ECSC as a faux (false) pooling ("le pool, ce faux semblant") because he considered it an unsatisfactory "piecemeal approach" to European unity and because he considered the French government "too weak" to dominate the ECSC as he thought proper. De Gaulle also felt that the ECSC had insufficient supranational authority because the Assembly was not ratified by a European referendum and he did not accept Raymond Aron
Raymond Aron
Raymond-Claude-Ferdinand Aron was a French philosopher, sociologist, journalist and political scientist.He is best known for his 1955 book The Opium of the Intellectuals, the title of which inverts Karl Marx's claim that religion was the opium of the people -- in contrast, Aron argued that in...
's contention that the ECSC was intended as a movement away from United States domination. Consequently, de Gaulle and his followers in the RPF
Rally of the French People
The Rally of the French People was a French political party, led by Charles de Gaulle.-Foundation:...
voted against ratification in the lower house of the French Parliament.
Despite these attacks and those from the extreme left, the ECSC found substantial public support and was established. It gained strong majority votes in all eleven chambers of the parliaments of the Six, as well as approval among associations and European public opinion. In 1950, many had thought another war was inevitable. The steel and coal interests, however, were quite vocal in their opposition. The Council of Europe, created by a proposal of Schuman's first government in May 1948, helped articulate European public opinion and gave the Community idea positive support.
Treaties
The 100-article Treaty of ParisTreaty of Paris (1951)
The Treaty of Paris was signed on 18 April 1951 between France, West Germany, Italy and the three Benelux countries , establishing the European Coal and Steel Community , which subsequently became part of the European Union...
, which established the ECSC, was signed on 18 April 1951 by "the inner six
Inner Six
The Inner Six, or simply The Six, are the six founding member states of the European Communities. This was in contrast to the outer seven who formed the European Free Trade Association rather than be involved in supranational European integration .-History:The inner six are those who responded to...
": France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The ECSC was the first international organisation to be based on supranational principles and was, through the establishment of a common market for coal and steel, intended to expand the economies, increase employment, and raise the standard of living within the Community. The market was also intended to progressively rationalise the distribution of high level production whilst ensuring stability and employment. The common market for coal was opened on 10 February 1953, and for steel on 1 May 1953. Upon taking effect the ECSC gradually replaced the International Authority for the Ruhr
International Authority for the Ruhr
The International Authority for the Ruhr was an international body established in 1949 by the Allied powers to control the coal and steel industry of the Ruhr Area in West Germany....
.
On 11 August 1952, the United States was the first non-ECSC member to recognise the Community and stated it would now deal with the ECSC on coal and steel matters, establishing its delegation in Brussels. Monnet responded by choosing Washington DC as the site of the ECSC's first external presence. The headline of the delegation's first bulletin read "Towards a Federal Government of Europe".
Six years after the Treaty of Paris, the Treaties of Rome were signed by the six ECSC members, creating the European Economic Community
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
(EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community
European Atomic Energy Community
The European Atomic Energy Community is an international organisation which is legally distinct from the European Union , but has the same membership, and is governed by the EU's institutions....
(EAEC or 'Euratom'). These Communities were based, with some adjustments, on the ECSC. The Treaties of Rome were to be in force indefinitely, unlike the Treaty of Paris, which was to expire after fifty years. These two new Communities worked on the creation of a customs union
Customs union
A customs union is a type of trade bloc which is composed of a free trade area with a common external tariff. The participant countries set up common external trade policy, but in some cases they use different import quotas...
and nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
community respectively. The Rome treaties were hurried through just before de Gaulle was given emergency powers and proclaimed the Fifth Republic
French Fifth Republic
The Fifth Republic is the fifth and current republican constitution of France, introduced on 4 October 1958. The Fifth Republic emerged from the collapse of the French Fourth Republic, replacing the prior parliamentary government with a semi-presidential system...
. Despite his efforts to 'chloroform' the Communities, their fields rapidly expanded and the EEC became the most important tool for political unification, overshadowing the ECSC.
Merger and expiration
Despite being separate legal entitiesLegal personality
Legal personality is the characteristic of a non-human entity regarded by law to have the status of a person....
, the ECSC, EEC and Euratom initially shared the Common Assembly
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
and the European Court of Justice
European Court of Justice
The Court can sit in plenary session, as a Grand Chamber of 13 judges, or in chambers of three or five judges. Plenary sitting are now very rare, and the court mostly sits in chambers of three or five judges...
, although the Councils
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union is the institution in the legislature of the European Union representing the executives of member states, the other legislative body being the European Parliament. The Council is composed of twenty-seven national ministers...
and the High Authority/Commissions
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
remained separate. To avoid duplication, the Merger Treaty
Merger Treaty
The Merger Treaty was a European treaty which combined the executive bodies of the European Coal and Steel Community , European Atomic Energy Community and the European Economic Community into a single institutional structure.The treaty was signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965 and came into force...
merged these separate bodies of the ECSC and Euratom with the EEC. The EEC later became one of the three pillars
Three pillars of the European Union
Between 1993 and 2009, the European Union legally consisted of three pillars. This structure was introduced with the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993, and was eventually abandoned on 1 December 2009 with the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, when the EU obtained a consolidated legal...
of the present day European Union.
The Treaty of Paris was frequently amended as the EC and EU evolved and expanded
Enlargement of the European Union
The Enlargement of the European Union is the process of expanding the European Union through the accession of new member states. This process began with the Inner Six, who founded the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952...
. With the treaty due to expire in 2002, debate began at the beginning of the 1990s on what to do with it. It was eventually decided that it should be left to expire. The areas covered by the ECSC's treaty were transferred to the Treaty of Rome
Treaty of Rome
The Treaty of Rome, officially the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, was an international agreement that led to the founding of the European Economic Community on 1 January 1958. It was signed on 25 March 1957 by Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany...
and the financial loose ends and the ECSC research fund were dealt with via a protocol of the Treaty of Nice
Treaty of Nice
The Treaty of Nice was signed by European leaders on 26 February 2001 and came into force on 1 February 2003. It amended the Maastricht Treaty and the Treaty of Rome...
. The treaty finally expired on 23 July 2002. That day, the ECSC flag
Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community
The flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with between six and seven stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community between 1958 until 2002 when the Community was merged into the European Union...
was lowered for the final time outside the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
and replaced with the EU flag.
Institutions
The institutions of the ECSC were the High Authority, the Common Assembly, the Special Council of Ministers and the Court of Justice. A Consultative Committee was established alongside the High Authority, as a fifth institution representing civil society. This was the first international representation of consumers in history. These institutions were merged in 1967 with those of the European Community, which then governed the ECSC, except for the Committee which continued to be independent until the expiration of the Treaty of Paris in 2002.The Treaty stated that the location of the institutions
Location of European Union institutions
The governing institutions of the European Union are not concentrated in a single capital city; they are instead spread across three cities with other EU agencies and bodies based further away...
would be decided by common accord of the members, yet the issue was hotly contested. As a temporary compromise, the institutions were provisionally located in the City of Luxembourg
Luxembourg (city)
The city of Luxembourg , also known as Luxembourg City , is a commune with city status, and the capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It is located at the confluence of the Alzette and Pétrusse Rivers in southern Luxembourg...
, despite the Assembly being based in Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
.
High Authority
The High Authority (the predecessor to the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
) was a nine-member executive body which governed the community. France, Germany and Italy appointed two members each to the Authority and the three smaller members appointed one each. These eight members then themselves appointed a ninth person to be President of the High Authority
President of the European Commission
The President of the European Commission is the head of the European Commission ― the executive branch of the :European Union ― the most powerful officeholder in the EU. The President is responsible for allocating portfolios to members of the Commission and can reshuffle or dismiss them if needed...
.
Despite being appointed by agreement of national governments acting together, the members were to pledge not to represent their national interest
National interest
The national interest, often referred to by the French expression raison d'État , is a country's goals and ambitions whether economic, military, or cultural. The concept is an important one in international relations where pursuit of the national interest is the foundation of the realist...
, but rather took a oath to defend the general interests of the Community as a whole. Their independence was aided by members being barred from having any occupation outside the Authority or having any business interests (paid or unpaid) and for three years after they left office. To further ensure impartiality, one third of the membership was to be renewed every two years, (article 10).
The Authority's principle innovation was its supranational character. It had a broad area of competence to ensure the objectives of the treaty were met and that the common market functioned smoothly. The High Authority could issue three types of legal instruments: Decisions, which were entirely binding laws; Recommendations, which had binding aims but the methods were left to member states; and Opinions, which had no legal force.
Up to the merger in 1967, the authority had five Presidents followed by an interim President serving for the final days.
| President | State | Took office | Left office | Authority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jean Monnet Jean Monnet Jean Omer Marie Gabriel Monnet was a French political economist and diplomat. He is regarded by many as a chief architect of European Unity and is regarded as one of its founding fathers... |
France | 10 August 1952 | 3 June 1955 | Monnet Authority Monnet Authority The Monnet Authority was the first High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community , between 1952 and 1955. Its president was Jean Monnet of France.... |
| René Mayer René Mayer René Mayer was a French Radical politician of the Fourth Republic who served briefly as Prime Minister during 1953. He led the Mayer Authority from 1955 to 1958.-Mayer's Ministry, 8 January – 28 June 1953:*René Mayer – President of the Council... |
France | 3 June 1955 | 13 January 1958 | Mayer Authority Mayer Authority The Mayer Authority was the second High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community , between 1955 and 1958. Its president was René Mayer of France.... |
| Paul Finet Paul Finet Paul Finit was a Belgian politician who served in the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community and led the Finet Authority from 1958 to 1959.... |
Belgium | 13 January 1958 | 15 September 1959 | Finet Authority Finet Authority The Finet Authority was the third High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community , between 1958 and 1959. Its president was Paul Finet of Belgium.... |
| Piero Malvestiti Piero Malvestiti Piero Malvestiti was an Italian politician who was a minister in successive governments in the 1940s and 1950s, a European Commissioner and President of the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community.... |
Italy | 15 September 1959 | 22 October 1963 | Malvestiti Authority Malvestiti Authority The Malvestiti Authority was the fourth High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community , between 1959 and 1963. Its president was Piero Malvestiti of Italy.... |
| Rinaldo Del Bo Rinaldo Del Bo Rinaldo Del Bo was an Italian politician who served in the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community, serving as President of the body between 9 October 1963 and 1967 as the Del Bo Authority.... |
Italy | 22 October 1963 | 6 July 1967 | Del Bo Authority Del Bo Authority The Del Bo Authority was the last High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community , between 1963 and 1967. Its president was Rinaldo Del Bo of Italy... |
| Albert Coppé Albert Coppé Albert Coppé was a Belgian and European politician and economist. He was a founding member of the CDV party and served in the European Commission as Commissioner for Social Affairs, Transport & Budget under the Malfatti & Mansholt Commissions... |
Belgium | interim | Coppé Authority Coppé Authority The Coppé Authority was an interim High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community , between 1 March and 5 July of 1967. Its president was Albert Coppé of Belgium... |
|
Other institutions
The Common Assembly (which later became the European ParliamentEuropean Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
) was composed of 78 representatives and exercised supervisory powers over the executive High Authority. The Common Assembly representatives were to be national MPs delegated each year by their Parliaments to the Assembly, or directly elected 'by universal suffrage' (article 21). Though in practice it was the former as there was no requirement for elections until the Treaties of Rome and no actual election until 1979
European Parliament election, 1979
The 1979 European elections were parliamentary elections held across all 9 European Community member states. They were the first European elections to be held, allowing citizens to elect 410 MEPs to the European Parliament, and also the first international election in history.Seats in the...
as Rome required agreement in the Council on the electoral system first. However, to emphasise that the chamber was not a traditional international organisation composed of representatives of national governments, the Treaty of Paris used the term "representatives of the peoples". The Assembly was not originally specified in the Schuman Plan because it was hoped the Community would use the institutions (Assembly, Court) of the Council of Europe. When this became impossible because of British objections, separate institutions had to be created. The Assembly was intended as a democratic counter-weight and check to the High Authority, to advise but also to have power to sack the Authority for incompetence, injustice, corruption or fraud. The first President
President of the European Parliament
The President of the European Parliament presides over the debates and activities of the European Parliament. He or she also represents the Parliament within the EU and internationally. The President's signature is required for enacting most EU laws and the EU budget.Presidents serve...
(akin to a Speaker) was Paul-Henri Spaak
Paul-Henri Spaak
Paul Henri Charles Spaak was a Belgian Socialist politician and statesman.-Early life:Paul-Henri Spaak was born on 25 January 1899 in Schaerbeek, Belgium, to a distinguished Belgian family. His grandfather, Paul Janson was an important member of the Liberal Party...
.
The Special Council of Ministers (equivalent to the current Council of the European Union
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union is the institution in the legislature of the European Union representing the executives of member states, the other legislative body being the European Parliament. The Council is composed of twenty-seven national ministers...
) was composed of representatives of national governments. The Presidency
Presidency of the Council of the European Union
The Presidency of the Council of the European Union is the responsibility for the functioning of the Council of the European Union that rotates between the member states of the European Union every six months. The presidency is not a single president but rather the task is undertaken by a national...
was held by each state for a period of three months, rotating between them in alphabetical order. One of its key aspects was the harmonisation of the work of the High Authority and that of national governments, which were still responsible for the state's general economic policies. The Council was also required to issue opinions on certain areas of work of the High Authority. Issues relating only to coal and steel were in the exclusive domain of the High Authority and in these areas the Council (unlike the modern Council) could only act as a scrutiny on the Authority. However, areas outside coal and steel required the consent of the Council.
The Court of Justice was to ensure the observation of ECSC law along with the interpretation and application of the Treaty. The Court was composed of seven judges, appointed by common accord of the national governments for six years. There were no requirements that the judges had to be of a certain nationality, simply that they be qualified and that their independence be beyond doubt. The Court was assisted by two Advocates General.
The Consultative Committee (similar to the Economic and Social Committee
Economic and Social Committee
The European Economic and Social Committee is a body of the European Union established in 1958. It is a consultative assembly composed of employers , employees and representatives of various other interests...
) had between 30 and 50 members equally divided between producers, workers, consumers and dealers in the coal and steel sector. Again, there was no national quotas and the treaty requires representatives of European associations to organise their own democratic procedures. They were to establish rules to make their membership fully 'representative' for democratic organised civil society. Members were appointed for two years and were not bound by any mandate or instruction of the organisations which appointed them. The Committee had a plenary assembly, bureau and a president. Again, the required democratic procedures were not introduced and nomination of these members remained in the hands of national ministers. The High Authority was obliged to consult the Committee in certain cases where it was appropriate and to keep it informed. The Consultative Committee remained separate (despite the merger of the other institutions) until 2002, when the Treaty expired and its duties were taken over by the Economic and Social Committee (ESC). Despite its independence, the Committee did cooperate with the ESC when they were consulted on the same issue.
Achievements and failures
Its mission (article 2) was general: to 'contribute to the expansion of the economy, the development of employment and the improvement of the standard of living' of its citizens. In terms of coal and steel production, the Community had little effect with the sectors respectively decreased and increased relative to the world trends. Trade between members did increase (tenfold for coal) which saved members' money by not having to import resources from the United States, particularly where there were cutbacks in one state. The High Authority also issued 280 modernization loans to the industry which helped the industry to improve output and reduce costs. Costs were further reduced by the abolition of tariffs at borders.Among the ECSC's greatest achievements are those on welfare issues. Some mines, for example were clearly unsustainable without government subsidies. Some miners had extremely poor housing. Over 15 years it financed 112,500 flats for workers, paying US$1,770 per flat, enabling workers to buy a home they could not have otherwise afforded. The ECSC also paid half the occupational redeployment costs of those workers who have lost their jobs as coal and steel facilities began to close down. Combined with regional redevelopment aid the ECSC spent $150 million creating 100,000 jobs, a third of which were for unemployed coal and steel workers. The welfare guarantees invented by the ECSC were extended to workers outside the coal and steel sector by some of its members.
Far more important than creating Europe's first social and regional policy, it is argued that the ECSC introduced European peace. It involved the continent's first European tax. This was a flat tax, a levy on production with a maximum rate of one percent. Given that the European Community countries are now experiencing the longest period of peace in more than two thousand years, this has been described as the cheapest tax for peace in history. Another world war, or 'world suicide' as Schuman called this threat in 1949, was avoided. In October 1953 Schuman said that the possibility of another European war had been eliminated. Reasoning had to prevail among member states.
However the ECSC failed to achieve several fundamental aims of the Treaty of Paris. It was hoped the ECSC would prevent a resurgence of large coal and steel groups such as the Konzerne, which helped Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
rise to power. In the Cold War trade-offs, the cartels and major companies re-emerged, leading to apparent price fixing
Price fixing
Price fixing is an agreement between participants on the same side in a market to buy or sell a product, service, or commodity only at a fixed price, or maintain the market conditions such that the price is maintained at a given level by controlling supply and demand...
(another element that was meant to be tackled). With a democratic supervisory system the worst aspects of past abuse were avoided with the anti-cartel powers of the Authority, the first international anti-cartel agency in the world. Efficient firms were allowed to expand into a European market without undue domination. Oil, gas, electricity became natural competitors to coal and also broke cartel powers. Furthermore, with the move to oil, the Community failed to define a proper energy policy. The Euratom treaty was largely stifled by de Gaulle and the European governments refused the suggestion of an Energy Community involving electricity and other vectors that was suggested at Messina in 1955. In a time of high inflation and monetary instability ECSC also fell short of ensuring an upward equalisation of pay of workers within the market. These failures could be put down to overambition in a short period of time, or that the goals were merely political posturing to be ignored. It has been argued that the greatest achievements of the European Coal and Steel Community lie in its revolutionary democratic concepts of a supranational Community.
See also
- Energy CommunityEnergy CommunityThe Energy Community is a community established between the European Union and a number of third countries in order to extend the EU internal energy market to Southeast Europe and beyond...
- Energy policy of the European UnionEnergy policy of the European UnionAlthough the European Union has legislated in the area of energy policy for many years, and evolved out of the European Coal and Steel Community, the concept of introducing a mandatory and comprehensive European energy policy was only approved at the meeting of the European Council on 27 October...
- Flag of the European Coal and Steel CommunityFlag of the European Coal and Steel CommunityThe flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with between six and seven stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community between 1958 until 2002 when the Community was merged into the European Union...
- History of the European UnionHistory of the European UnionThe 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 7 member states to 27, a majority of states in Europe....
- History of the Ruhr DistrictHistory of the Ruhr DistrictThe actual boundaries of the Ruhr district differ slightly according to the source but a good working definition is to define the Lippe and Ruhr as the northern and southern boundaries respectively, with the Rhein the western boundary, stretching to the East as far as Hamm.In the Middle Ages, local...
- Industrial plans for GermanyIndustrial plans for GermanyThe Industrial plans for Germany were designs the Allies considered imposing on Germany in the aftermath of World War II to reduce and manage Germany's industrial capacity.-Background:...
- Monnet planMonnet PlanThe Monnet plan was proposed by French civil servant Jean Monnet after the end of World War II. It was a reconstruction plan for France that proposed giving France control over the German coal and steel areas of the Ruhr area and Saar and using these resources to bring France to 150% of pre-war...
- Schuman DeclarationSchuman DeclarationThe Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950 was a governmental proposal by then-French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman to create a new form of organization of States in Europe called a supranational Community. Following the experiences of two world wars, France recognized that certain values such as...
- Supranationalism
- Supranational unionSupranational unionSupranationalism is a method of decision-making in multi-national political communities, wherein power is transferred or delegated to an authority by governments of member states. The concept of supranational union is sometimes used to describe the European Union, as a new type of political entity...
External links
- rtsp://rtsppress.cec.eu.int/Archive/video/mpeg/i000679/i000679.rm (insert address into RealPlayerRealPlayerRealPlayer is a cross-platform media player by RealNetworks that plays a number of multimedia formats including MP3, MPEG-4, QuickTime, Windows Media, and multiple versions of proprietary RealAudio and RealVideo formats.-History:...
) Common Destiny, a period film explaining the Coal and Steel Community, Europa (web portal)Europa (web portal)Europa is the official web portal of the European Union . It is intended to improve the public’s interaction with EU institutions by quickly directing website visitors to the services or information they are seeking. Europa links to all EU agencies and institutions in addition to press releases... - Treaty constituting the European Coal and Steel Community, European NAvigatorEuropean NAvigatorEuropean NAvigator was the former name of the digital library on the history of European integration and related institutions. The research project is now online at www.cvce.eu, a website dedicated to European integration studies....
- Schuman info
- The institutions of the European Coal and Steel Community, European NAvigator
- France, Germany and the Struggle for the War-making Natural Resources of the Rhineland, American UniversityAmerican UniversityAmerican University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
- Ruhr Delegation of the United States of America, Council of Foreign Ministers American Embassy Moscow, 24 March 1947, Truman Library