Treaty of Brussels
Encyclopedia
The Treaty of Brussels was signed on 17 March 1948 between Belgium
, France
, Luxembourg
, the Netherlands
and the United Kingdom
, as an expansion to the preceding year's defence pledge, the Dunkirk Treaty
signed between Britain and France. As the Treaty of Brussels contained a mutual defence clause, it provided a basis upon which the 1954 Paris Conference established the Western European Union
(WEU).
cleavage had made the United Nations
incapable of. The Pact had cultural and social clauses, and concepts for the setting up of a 'Consultative Council'. The basis for this was that a cooperation between Western nations would help stop the spread of Communism.
In that it was an effort towards European post-war security cooperation, the Brussels Pact was a precursor to NATO and similar to it in the sense that it promised European mutual defence. However, it greatly differed from NATO in that it envisaged a purely European mutual defence pact primarily against Germany, whereas NATO took shape the next year, on the recognition that Europe was unavoidably divided into two opposing blocks (western and communist), that the USSR was a much greater threat than the possibility of a resurgent Germany, and that western European mutual defence would have to be atlantacist (i.e. including North America
).
In September 1948, the parties to the Treaty of Brussels decided to create a military agency under the name of the Western Union Defence Organization
. It consisted of a WU Defence Committee at Prime Ministerial level, and a WU Combined Chiefs of Staff committee, including all the national chiefs of staff, which would direct the operative organisation.
Field Marshal
Bernard Montgomery (UK) was appointed permanent Chairman of the Land, Naval and Air Commanders-in-Committee, with headquarters in Fontainebleau
, France. The nominated commanders-in-chief were General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
(France) as C-in-C, Land Forces, Air Chief Marshal Sir James Robb
(UK) as C-in-C, Air Forces, and Vice-Admiral Robert Jaujard (France) for the Navy, as Flag Officer Western Europe. Volume 3 of Nigel Hamilton's Life of Montgomery of Alamein gives a good account of the disagreements between Montgomery and de Lattre which caused much ill-feeling in the headquarters.
The Treaty of Brussels was amended by the Protocol signed in Paris
at the conclusion of the London and Paris Conferences
on 23 October 1954, which added West Germany
and Italy
to the Western Union Defence Organization. On this occasion it was renamed the Western European Union
.
:
became much more important than the threat of German rearmament.
Western Europe therefore sought a new mutual defence pact involving the United States
, a powerful military force for such an alliance. The United States, concerned with containing the influence of the USSR, was responsive to this idea.
There was therefore rapid progress on this idea, and secret meetings had already begun by the end of March, where American
, Canadian
and British officials negotiated over the concept. Eventually, it would lead to the formation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation by the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington DC in 1949. The Western Union Defence Organization
structure was absorbed into NATO from December 1950 to April 1951. NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
took over the WUDO's defence role.
was established.
took over the WEU's mutual defence clause. There was much discussion about what to do with the WEU following the introduction of Lisbon, including plans to scrap it. On 30 March 2010 in a Written Ministerial Statement the United Kingdom gave notice that the UK intended to withdraw from the Western European Union within a year. On 31 March Germany announced her intention to withdraw from the Modified Brussels Treaty. The ten Member States of the Modified Brussels Treaty announced their collective decision to withdraw from the Treaty and to close the WEU organisation by June 2011. On 30 June 2011 the WEU officially ceased to exist.
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, as an expansion to the preceding year's defence pledge, the Dunkirk Treaty
Dunkirk Treaty
The Treaty of Dunkirk was signed on 4 March 1947, between France and the United Kingdom in Dunkirk as a Treaty of Alliance and Mutual Assistance against a possible German attack in the aftermath of World War II. The Dunkirk Treaty entered into force on 8 September 1947 and it preceded the Treaty...
signed between Britain and France. As the Treaty of Brussels contained a mutual defence clause, it provided a basis upon which the 1954 Paris Conference established the Western European Union
Western European Union
The Western European Union was an international organisation tasked with implementing the Modified Treaty of Brussels , an amended version of the original 1948 Treaty of Brussels...
(WEU).
Background
The Treaty provided western Europe with a bulwark against the communist threat. It also brought forth greater collective security, something that the new Cold WarCold 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...
cleavage had made the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
incapable of. The Pact had cultural and social clauses, and concepts for the setting up of a 'Consultative Council'. The basis for this was that a cooperation between Western nations would help stop the spread of Communism.
In that it was an effort towards European post-war security cooperation, the Brussels Pact was a precursor to NATO and similar to it in the sense that it promised European mutual defence. However, it greatly differed from NATO in that it envisaged a purely European mutual defence pact primarily against Germany, whereas NATO took shape the next year, on the recognition that Europe was unavoidably divided into two opposing blocks (western and communist), that the USSR was a much greater threat than the possibility of a resurgent Germany, and that western European mutual defence would have to be atlantacist (i.e. including North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
).
In September 1948, the parties to the Treaty of Brussels decided to create a military agency under the name of the Western Union Defence Organization
Western Union Defence Organization
The Western Union Defence Organization was the defence arm of the Western Union, the precursor to the Western European Union . The WUDO was also a precursor to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization , and its headquarters, personnel, and plans provided the nucleus for NATO's military command...
. It consisted of a WU Defence Committee at Prime Ministerial level, and a WU Combined Chiefs of Staff committee, including all the national chiefs of staff, which would direct the operative organisation.
Field Marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
Bernard Montgomery (UK) was appointed permanent Chairman of the Land, Naval and Air Commanders-in-Committee, with headquarters in Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the arrondissement of Fontainebleau...
, France. The nominated commanders-in-chief were General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny, GCB, MC was a French military hero of World War II and commander in the First Indochina War.-Early life:...
(France) as C-in-C, Land Forces, Air Chief Marshal Sir James Robb
James Robb (RAF officer)
Air Chief Marshal Sir James Milne Robb GCB, KBE, DSO, DFC, AFC, RAF, was a senior Royal Air Force commander. After early service in the First World War with the Northumberland Fusiliers, Robb joined the Royal Flying Corps and became a flying ace credited with seven aerial victories...
(UK) as C-in-C, Air Forces, and Vice-Admiral Robert Jaujard (France) for the Navy, as Flag Officer Western Europe. Volume 3 of Nigel Hamilton's Life of Montgomery of Alamein gives a good account of the disagreements between Montgomery and de Lattre which caused much ill-feeling in the headquarters.
The Treaty of Brussels was amended by the Protocol signed in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
at the conclusion of the London and Paris Conferences
London and Paris Conferences
The London and Paris Conferences were two related conferences in London and Paris in late September and October 1954 to determine the status of West Germany...
on 23 October 1954, which added West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
to the Western Union Defence Organization. On this occasion it was renamed the Western European Union
Western European Union
The Western European Union was an international organisation tasked with implementing the Modified Treaty of Brussels , an amended version of the original 1948 Treaty of Brussels...
.
Signing ceremony
The Treaty was signed by the following plenipotentiariesPlenipotentiary
The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...
:
- Prince Charles of BelgiumPrince Charles of BelgiumPrince Charles, Count of Flanders, Prince of Belgium was the second son of Albert I, King of the Belgians and Duchess Elisabeth in Bavaria. Born in Brussels, he served in lieu of his older brother King Leopold III from 1944 until 1950 as Prince Regent until Leopold could return to Belgium and...
, as the reigning Prince RegentPrince RegentA prince regent is a prince who rules a monarchy as regent instead of a monarch, e.g., due to the Sovereign's incapacity or absence ....
of Belgium - President of FrancePresident of the French RepublicThe President of the French Republic colloquially referred to in English as the President of France, is France's elected Head of State....
Vincent AuriolVincent AuriolVincent Jules Auriol was a French politician who served as the first President of the Fourth Republic from 1947 to 1954. He also served as interim President of the Provisional Government from November to December 1946, making him one of only three people who were heads of state of the French... - Charlotte, Grand Duchess of LuxembourgCharlotte, Grand Duchess of LuxembourgCharlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg was the reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg from 1919 to 1964.-Early life and life as Grand Duchess:...
- Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
- King George VI of the United Kingdom
- Paul-Henri SpaakPaul-Henri SpaakPaul 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...
, Prime Minister of Belgium
- Georges BidaultGeorges BidaultGeorges-Augustin Bidault was a French politician. During World War II, he was active in the French Resistance. After the war, he served as foreign minister and prime minister on several occasions before he joined the Organisation armée secrète.-Early life:...
, French Minister of Foreign AffairsMinister 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... - Joseph Bech, Luxembourgish Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Gaston EyskensGaston EyskensGaston François Marie, Viscount Eyskens was a Belgian economist, Christian Democratic politician of the CVP-PSC, and statesman.He was a six-time Prime Minister of Belgium from 1949 to 1950, 1958 to 1961 and 1968 to 1973...
, Belgian Minister of Finance - Carel Godfried Willem Hendrik baron van Boetzelaer van Oosterhout, Dutch Minister of Foreign AffairsDutch Minister of Foreign AffairsThis page is a list of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, since the revision of the constitution in 1848 until present.-List of Ministers of Foreign Affairs:-Living Ministers of Foreign Affairs:...
- Ernest BevinErnest BevinErnest Bevin was a British trade union leader and Labour politician. He served as general secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union from 1922 to 1945, as Minister of Labour in the war-time coalition government, and as Foreign Secretary in the post-war Labour Government.-Early...
, Secretary of State for Foreign and Imperial Affairs of the United Kingdom - Jean de Hautecloque, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the French Republic in Brussels
- Robert Als, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Luxembourg in Brussels
- Baron Binnert Philip van Harinxma thoe Slooten, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Netherlands in Brussels
- George William RendelGeorge William RendelSir George William Rendel was a British diplomat. Rendel, the son of the engineer George Wightwick Rendel was educated at Downside School and at Queen's College, Oxford, graduating in Modern History in 1911....
, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of His Britannic Majesty in Brussels
NATO
When the division of Europe into two opposing camps became unavoidable, the threat of the USSR and Eastern BlocWarsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
became much more important than the threat of German rearmament.
Western Europe therefore sought a new mutual defence pact involving the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, a powerful military force for such an alliance. The United States, concerned with containing the influence of the USSR, was responsive to this idea.
There was therefore rapid progress on this idea, and secret meetings had already begun by the end of March, where American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and British officials negotiated over the concept. Eventually, it would lead to the formation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation by the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington DC in 1949. The Western Union Defence Organization
Western Union Defence Organization
The Western Union Defence Organization was the defence arm of the Western Union, the precursor to the Western European Union . The WUDO was also a precursor to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization , and its headquarters, personnel, and plans provided the nucleus for NATO's military command...
structure was absorbed into NATO from December 1950 to April 1951. NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe is the central command of NATO military forces. It is located at Casteau, north of the Belgian city of Mons...
took over the WUDO's defence role.
Paris Agreements
In 1954 West Germany and Italy were invited to join the pact, and accordingly the Brussels Treaty was modified. The Western European UnionWestern European Union
The Western European Union was an international organisation tasked with implementing the Modified Treaty of Brussels , an amended version of the original 1948 Treaty of Brussels...
was established.
Lisbon Treaty
In 2009, the Treaty of LisbonTreaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon of 1668 was a peace treaty between Portugal and Spain, concluded at Lisbon on 13 February 1668, through the mediation of England, in which Spain recognized the sovereignty of Portugal's new ruling dynasty, the House of Braganza....
took over the WEU's mutual defence clause. There was much discussion about what to do with the WEU following the introduction of Lisbon, including plans to scrap it. On 30 March 2010 in a Written Ministerial Statement the United Kingdom gave notice that the UK intended to withdraw from the Western European Union within a year. On 31 March Germany announced her intention to withdraw from the Modified Brussels Treaty. The ten Member States of the Modified Brussels Treaty announced their collective decision to withdraw from the Treaty and to close the WEU organisation by June 2011. On 30 June 2011 the WEU officially ceased to exist.
External links
- European Navigator The Treaty of Brussels
- History until the creation of the WEU
- Brussels Pact