Operative from July 1952, this formed an early landmark in the course of European integration. on the basis of preparatory work done by Jean MONNET, a proposal to create it was first made public in May 1950 by the French foreign minister, Robert schuman. Accepting that grand federalist projects (see federalism)!]) were as yet premature, the scheme (often referred to as “the Schuman Plan”) envisaged a process of
(see under European
(see under European
Integration that would advance from sector to sector, beginning with the heavy industries of steel and coal. It was also understood that by pooling these vital resources France and the new Federal Republic of Germany would be drawn together, thus reducing the scope for further conflict. During 1951 Italy and the trio of Benelux countries also agreed to be founding members of the ECSC, based on a 50-year treaty, and thus completed the grouping that became known as “the six.” Conversely, the UK chose to exclude itself, fearing a loss of national sovereignty (see Britain and EUROPE). The ECsC committed itself to the abolition of tariffs and quotas on coal, iron, and steel, thus paving a way towards the 1957 rome treaties. The European Economic Community (EEC) that resulted from those agreements largely mirrored the bureaucratic machinery already established for the ECSC. The Merger Treaty of 1965 (effective from 1967) brought the ECSC together with the EEC and euratom so as to form the European Community (EC), though each of the three bodies continued to enjoy a semi-independent existence. With widening participation in the integration process, membership of the ECSC grew accordingly, though it could not reverse retrenchment in the coal and steel industries. In 2002, on the expiry of its founding agreement, the organization was formally disbanded and its functions were fully absorbed into the European Union.
World History
