Merging the executives
Merging the executives
The run-up to the Merger Treaty
Report by the Luxembourg Government on the merger of the executive bodies (26 July 1960)
TextOn 26 July 1960, an internal report by the Luxembourg Government emphasises the importance of the merger of the executive bodies of the three European Communities.
'The merger of the European executive bodies' from Il Popolo (28 September 1960)
TextOn 28 September 1960, the Italian daily newspaper Il Popolo describes the progress of negotiations on the merging of the European executives and considers the formation and the role of the future Community bodies.
‘Brussels, administrative capital of the Europe of the “Six”? I.’ from Tageblatt (9 December 1960)
TextOn 9 December 1960, as debates are held over the merger of the executive bodies, the Luxembourg socialist daily newspaper Tageblatt presents the candidate cities that are still in the running to become the seat of the Europe of the Six and speculates on the real chances of Luxembourg City.
‘Brussels, administrative capital of the Europe of the “Six”? II.’ from Tageblatt (10 December 1960)
TextOn 10 December 1960, as debates are held over the seat of the European institutions and the merger of the executive bodies, the Luxembourg socialist daily newspaper Tageblatt publishes the second part of its feature on this topic. The article outlines the many arguments in favour of the choice of Brussels and speculates as to whether Luxembourg City’s bid to become the single seat of the institutions has any chance of being accepted.
Note by Pierre Pescatore on the merger plan for the European Communities (16 May 1961)
TextOn 16 May 1961, Pierre Pescatore, Political Director in the Luxembourg Foreign Ministry, drafts a summary note on the progress in the ongoing negotiations on the plan to merge the Community executive bodies, in a bid to clarify Luxembourg’s position on this matter.
‘The planned merger of the European executive bodies’ from Le Soir (2 August 1963)
TextOn 2 August 1963, the Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir outlines the main points of the press conference held by Luxembourg Foreign Minister Eugène Schaus, who set out Luxembourg’s position on the planned merger of the executive bodies of the three Communities.
Press conference held by Eugène Schaus: merging the executive bodies (CLT, 24 September 1963)
TonAt the end of a Council of Ministers of the Six, the Luxembourg Minister for Foreign Affairs, Eugène Schaus, explains the position of the Grand Duchy on merging the executives.
'A single seat for all the European institutions' from La Libre Belgique (5 January 1964)
TextOn 5 January 1964, the daily newspaper La Libre Belgique ponders on the location of the future executives of the European Communities.
Statement by Pierre Werner on the merger of the executives (Luxembourg, 27 January 1964)
TextOn 27 January 1964, Pierre Werner, Minister without portfolio and leader of the Luxembourg Government, issues a statement on the problem of merging the European executives and on its implications for Luxembourg.
Report from Albert Borschette to Eugène Schaus on the merger of the executive bodies and the seats of the European institutions (15 February 1964)
TextOn 15 February 1964, Albert Borschette, Luxembourg Permanent Representative to the European Communities, sends a report to his Foreign Minister, Eugène Schaus, on Luxembourg’s position regarding the merger of the European executive bodies and the seats of the European institutions. The document describes the economic, material and political impact of the proposed and potential solutions and outlines the approach the Luxembourg Government could adopt on this matter.
Statement by Pierre Werner on the seats of the Community institutions (29 July 1964)
TextOn 29 July 1964, as discussions are held on the merger of the Community executive bodies, Luxembourg Prime Minister Pierre Werner makes a statement during a meeting of the Councils of the Communities in which he outlines Luxembourg’s position regarding the seats of the Community institutions.
Note by Pierre Pescatore on the establishment of the European Parliamentary Assembly in Luxembourg (7 August 1964)
TextIn this note dated 7 August 1964, Pierre Pescatore, Minister Plenipotentiary and Secretary-General in the Luxembourg Foreign Ministry, reports on the discussions held between the Ministry and the Benelux Governments to try to persuade them to convince their respective Members of the European Parliamentary Assembly that the meetings of the Assembly should be transferred from Strasbourg to Luxembourg.
Letter from Jean-Pierre Kremer to Pierre Werner on the transfer of the European Parliamentary Assembly (10 September 1964)
TextOn 10 September 1964, the Luxembourg Ambassador to West Germany, Jean-Pierre Kremer, reports to his Prime Minister Pierre Werner on his meeting with Rolf Otto Lahr, State Secretary in the West German Foreign Ministry, to secure the support of German MPs on the question of the transfer of the seat of the European Parliamentary Assembly in Luxembourg. In the ambassador’s view, these exchanges with Ralf Otto Lahr appear to be promising.
‘The Grand Duchy and Europe’ from Le Soir (4 February 1965)
TextOn 4 February 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, grants an interview to the Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir in which he outlines Luxembourg’s current and future priorities with regard to the merger of the Community’s executive bodies and the relocation to Brussels of certain departments currently based in Luxembourg.
‘Luxembourg’s destiny in the Europe of the Six’ from Le Soir (22 February 1965)
TextOn 22 February 1965, the Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir outlines the implications for the city of Luxembourg, as the seat of several Community institutions, of the future Treaty merging the executive bodies of the European Communities.
Interview with Edmund Wellenstein: the merger of the Community executive bodies from the viewpoint of the High Authority (The Hague, 27 August 2009)
VideoIn this interview, Edmund Wellenstein, Secretary-General of the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1960 and 1967, explains the conditions in which the Community executive bodies were merged between 1965 and 1967, particularly identifying the need to defend the historical prerogatives of the High Authority.
Treaty establising a Single Council and a Single Commission
Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities (8 April 1965)
TextThe Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities is signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965 and enters into force on 1 July 1967.
Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities-Protocol on the privileges and immunities (Brussels, 8 April 1965)
TextProtocol annexed to the Treaties establishing the European Community and the European Atomic Energy Community by the Treaty establishing a single Council and a single Commission of the European Communities of 8 April 1965.
Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities-Final Act (8 April 1965)
TextFinal act of the Treaty merging the executives of the European Communities.
Decision of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States on the provisional location of the institutions (8 April 1965)
TextDecision of 8 April 1965, by the representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Communities, relative to the provisional location of certain institutions and departments of the Communities in Strasbourg, Brussels and Luxembourg.
Merging the executives (1 July 1967)
SchemaDiagram illustrating the merger of the executives that resulted from the entry into force on 1 July 1967 of the Treaty of 8 April 1965 establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities.
Signature of the Merger Treaty
Signing of the Treaty merging the executive bodies of the three European Communities (Brussels, 8 April 1965)
VideoOn 8 April 1965, in Brussels, the Foreign Ministers of the Six sign the Treaty which provides for the merging of the executive bodies of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC). After ratification by the national parliaments of the Six, the Merger Treaty — establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission in Brussels for the three Communities — will enter into force on 1 July 1967.
Signing of the Merger Treaty by Luxembourg (Brussels, 8 April 1965)
BildOn 8 April 1965, in Brussels, Pierre Werner (right), Luxembourg Prime Minister, accompanied by Albert Borschette (left), Luxembourg Permanent Representative to the European Communities, signs the Treaty merging the Executives (a Single Council and a Single Commission) of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom).
Signature of the Merger Treaty
Signing of the Merger Treaty by France (Brussels, 8 April 1965)
BildOn 8 April 1965, in Brussels, Maurice Couve de Murville, French Foreign Minister, signs, on behalf of France, the Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the three European Communities.
Statement by Pierre Werner (Luxembourg, 21 October 1966)
VideoOn 21 October 1966, Pierre Werner, Prime Minister of Luxembourg, outlines to his compatriots the scope of the Treaty which provides for the merging the executive bodies of the three European Communities after it had been ratified by the Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies.
Final meeting of the ECSC High Authority (Luxembourg, 28 June 1967)
VideoOn 28 June 1967, the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) meets for the last time in Luxembourg. On 1 July, the Treaty — signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965 — whereby the executive bodies of the ECSC, the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC) were merged enters into force. The Single Commission will hold its first meeting in Brussels on 6 July with the Belgian, Jean Rey, in the chair.
915th and final meeting of the High Authority in Luxembourg (28 June 1967)
BildOn 28 June 1967, the final meeting of the High Authority takes place in Luxembourg, under the presidency of Belgian Albert Coppé. The photo shows, from left to right: Roger Reynaud, Karl Hettlage, Albert Coppé and Fritz Hellwig.
Reactions
"La fusion des exécutifs européens" dans Nieuw Europa (Mars 1965)
TextEn mars 1965, en vue de la signature, le 8 avril, du traité instituant un Conseil unique et une Commission unique des Communautés européennes, la revue du Mouvement néerlandais européen Nieuw Europa pointe les avantages ainsi que les désavantages du nouveau traité.
‘Europe and the merging of the executive bodies’ from La Libre Belgique (4 March 1965)
TextOn 4 March 1965, the daily newspaper La Libre Belgique deplores the consequences of the merging of the Community executive bodies and criticises, in particular, Paul-Henri Spaak, Belgian Foreign Minister, for having failed to defend Belgium’s interests effectively on this matter.
‘Merger of the three European Community executives' from the Corriere della Sera (9 April 1965)
TextOn 9 April 1965, the Italian daily newspaper Corriere della Sera comments on the speech made by the Italian Foreign Minister, Amintore Fanfani, after the signing of the Treaty merging the executive bodies of the three Communities.
'A single Executive will be able to take up office on 1 January 1966' from Communauté européenne
TextIn April 1965, the monthly publication Communauté européenne sets out the reasons behind the merging of the executives of the three European Communities.
First meeting of the Single Commission
"Sacrifié sur l’autel d’une certaine Europe" dans La Dernière Heure (8 mai 1967)
TextLe 8 mai 1967, le quotidien liégeois La Dernière Heure déplore le départ, sous la pression du général de Gaulle, président de la République française, qui le juge trop fédéraliste de Walter Hallstein à la tête de la Commission européenne unique née de la fusion des exécutifs communautaires.
First meeting of the Single Commission (Brussels, 6 July 1967)
VideoOn 6 July 1967, in Brussels, the Belgian, Jean Rey, chairs the first meeting of the 14-member Single Commission created by the Treaty establishing a Single Council and Single Commission — signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965 — whereby the executive bodies of the three European Communities were merged.
Members of the Rey Commission
BildThe Rey Commission (1967–1970) is the first single Commission, resulting from the Treaty merging the executive bodies of the three European Communities, signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965. The Commission is composed of 14 members. Second row from the left: Jean-François Deniau, Guido Colonna di Paliano, Wilhelm Haferkamp, Hans von der Groeben, Albert Coppé, Emmanuel Sassen, Henri Rochereau, Victor Bodson and Edoardo Martino. First row: Raymond Barre, Sicco Mansholt, Jean Rey, Lionello Levi Sandri and Fritz Hellwig.
Meeting of the Rey Commission (1967)
BildOn 6 July 1967, the first meeting of the single Commission of the three European Communities is chaired by Jean Rey of Belgium.
Jean Rey
PassEmile Noël
PassInterview with Edmund Wellenstein: the role of Émile Noël (The Hague, 27 August 2009)
VideoIn this interview, Edmund Wellenstein, Secretary-General of the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1960 and 1967, describes the personality and decisive action of Émile Noël, his counterpart within the EEC Commission.
Interview with Edmund Wellenstein: the establishment of the Directorate-General for Foreign Trade at the European Commission (The Hague, 27 August 2009)
VideoIn this interview, Edmund Wellenstein, Director-General for Foreign Trade at the Commission of the European Communities from 1967 to 1970, describes the circumstances of his appointment to this post and outlines the relationship between this DG and the Private Office of Commissioner Jean-François Deniau, responsible for negotiations on accession to the European Economic Community from 1967 to 1970.