The European Communities The European Economic Community 1958 72

"The ink on the Treaties of Rome of 25 March 1957 was hardly dry when the Commission set itself up for business on 1 January 1958 in Brussels with an agenda covering all areas of the economic life of the six founder countries: Germany, France, Italy and the three Benelux countries of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The 15-year period - from 1958 to 1972 - covered by this work corresponds to the beginnings of the European Commission, whose first task was to come up with practical means of achieving the treaties' main objective - the establishment of a common market - taking as its point of departure the general interest of the entire Community of six Member States. Forged by men and women with often very different backgrounds, the history of the first few years is one of crises but also of achievements which shaped the major milestones of European integration in almost every area. Imagination, long-term vision, enthusiasm and tenacity seem to have been the great virtues of the people working for the young European institution at that time. By piecing together over a number of years the recollections of former Commission officials, a consortium of university teachers under the direction of Professor Michel Dumoulin of the Catholic University of Louvain at Louvain-la-Neuve has at last made it possible to tell the story of what happened during those early days. This is a new edition of the book originally published in 2007. A similar project has since resulted in the publication of a book about the history of the Commission between 1973 and 1986."--Editor.

The ink on the Rome Treaties of 25 March 1957 was hardly dry when the Commission set itself up for business on 1 January 1958 in Brussels with an agenda covering all areas of the economic life of the six founder countries: France, Germany, Italy and the three Benelux countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. The 15-year period - from 1958 to 1972 - covered by this work corresponds to the beginnings of the European Commission, whose first task was to come up with practical means of achieving the Treaties' main objective - the establishment of a common market - taking as its point of departure the general interest of the entire Community of six Member States. Forged by men and women with often very different backgrounds, the history of the first few years is one of crises but also of achievements which shaped the major milestones of European integration in almost every area. Imagination, long-term vision, enthusiasm and tenacity seem to have been the great virtues of the people working for the young European institution at that time. By piecing together over a number of years the recollections of former Commission officials, a consortium of university teachers under the direction of Professor Michel Dumoulin of the Catholic University of Louvain at Louvain-la-Neuve has at last made it possible to tell the story of what happened during those early days.

This publication is both a historical record and a commemoration covering the early years of the European Commission from 1958 to 1972, before the first enlargement. Forged by men and women with often very different backgrounds, the history of the first few years is one of crises but also of achievements which shaped the major milestones of European integration in almost every area of the economic life of the six founder countries: France, Germany, Italy and the three Benelux countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. A team of historians from the six founding member states have gathered together recollections of those who were actively engaged in this process in order to write a living history of the institution, its aspirations, successes and failures, as seen from the inside. The publication is also available in a hardback edition (ISBN 9789279054907).

The establishment of the European Economic Community in 1958 was one of the most remarkable developments in the history of the post-World War II era. It aimed for nothing less than a complete economic union so that goods, people, and capital would be able to pass over national boundaries of member countries as freely as they move within any one country. As the Community's target date of 1992 for economic integration draws closer, the need for information, both current and historical, becomes more urgent. The aim of this annotated bibliography is to create a critical and descriptive list of books published mainly in English for businessmen and analysts, combining older publications with new. The literature on the EC is vast and issues The Community itself nearly 3000 publications a year. The range of material covered in this volume is distinguished by its great scope. Historical sections provide listings on the postwar years of economic recovery, the development of the EC, and biographies of the leading personalities involved. Policy-oriented sections encompass such subjects as labor, transportation, environment, energy, and education. The political ramifications of economic union, financial and fiscal affairs, relations between the EC and the Third World, and foreign relations in general are dealt with in separate sections. The volume concludes with a listing of major European Community publications. The sheer bulk of published material on the EC, much of it duplication, has made keeping up with its developments difficult for small and medium in Europe and elsewhere. This invaluable sourcebook will provide the business community and the political establishments with better access to EC information as they grapple with the implications of 1992.