The signing of the treaty
The establishment of the Council of Europe
Conference on the establishment of a Council of Europe: extract concerning the name of the organisation (London, 3 and 4 May 1949)
TextExtract from the minutes of the Conference on the establishment of a Council of Europe, held at St James’s Palace in London from 3 to 5 May 1949, concerning the issue of the name of the organisation.
‘The Council of Europe, a step towards a federal organisation of states’ from Het Parool (3 May 1949)
TextOn 3 May 1949, two days after the signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe, the Dutch daily newspaper Het Parool gives an initial outline of the organisation and objectives of the Council of Europe.
Signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe (London, 5 May 1949)
VideoOn 5 May 1949 in St James’s Palace, London, the Foreign Ministers of Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty establishing the Council of Europe.
Address given by Ernest Bevin (London, 5 May 1949)
TonErnest Bevin, British Foreign Secretary, delivers the inaugural address at the ceremony held to mark the signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe on 5 May 1949 in London. On this occasion, he declares that the new institution has given the peoples of Europe new hope.
Signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe (London, 5 May 1949)
BildThe signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe takes place on 5 May 1949 at St James’s Palace, London.
Signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe (London, 5 May 1949)
BildOn 5 May 1949 in London, Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, signs the Statute of the Council of Europe, on behalf of France.
Statute of the Council of Europe (London, 5 May 1949)
TextOn 5 May 1949, in London, the Foreign Ministers of Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom sign the Statute of the Council of Europe. It enters into force on 3 August 1949.
Statement by Robert Schuman (London, 5 May 1949)
TextOn 5 May 1949, at the signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe in London, the French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman calls for a revival of the European spirit and hails the dawn of new political cooperation in Europe.
Statement by Joseph Bech (London, 5 May 1949)
TextOn 5 May 1949, at the signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe in London, the Luxembourg Foreign Minister Joseph Bech emphasises the need for the peoples of Europe to commit themselves to the unification of the Continent.
Statement by Count Carlo Sforza (London, 5 May 1949)
TextOn 5 May 1949, commenting on the signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe in London, the Italian Foreign Minister, Count Carlo Sforza, presents the new institution as an instrument of peace in the service of European unification.
Pages bearing the signatures to the Statute of the Council of Europe
TextThe final pages of the Statute of the Council of Europe bearing the signatures of the representatives of the ten founding member States.
The creation of the Council of Europe (1949)
KarteOn 5 May 1949, in London, ten countries sign the Statute of the Council of Europe which aims to establish European cooperation in the political, economic, social, cultural, scientific, legal and administrative spheres. The Statute enters into force on 3 August 1949.
'European awareness' from the Süddeutsche Zeitung (5 May 1949)
TextOn 5 May 1949, the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung focuses on the diplomatic negotiations that seek to establish political cooperation between the democratic states of Western Europe and to establish a Council of Europe.
‘The Council of Europe' from Le Monde (7 May 1949)
TextOn 7 May 1949, commenting on the signing of the Treaty establishing the Council of Europe in London two days earlier, the French daily newspaper Le Monde analyses the powers and the role of the Strasbourg institution.
'What is hidden behind the United States of Europe?' from the Zeitung vum Lëtzebuerger Vollek (28 May 1949)
TextOn 28 May 1949, the Luxembourg Communist daily newspaper Zeitung vum Lëtzebuerger Vollek portrays the British plans for European unification as an attempt by the United States to shield Western Europe from Soviet influence.
Address given by Carlo Sforza (Rome, 14 and 21 July 1949)
TextOn 14 and 21 July 1949, addressing the Italian Parliament, Carlo Sforza, Italian Foreign Minister, emphasises the importance of the Council of Europe for the European integration process.
Certificate on the entry into force of the Statute of the Council of Europe (London, 3 August 1949)
TextOn 3 August 1949, the Head of the Treaty Department of the British Foreign Office delivers a certificate on the entry into force of the Statute of the Council of Europe on behalf of the Government of the United Kingdom, depositary of the instruments of ratification.
Cartoon by Pictor on the question of the FRG’s accession to the Council of Europe (18 August 1949)
Bild‘A Strasbourg production: Europa and the bull.’ On 18 August 1949, the cartoonist Pictor wonders what role the Council of Europe might play in support of West Germany’s integration within Western Europe.
General Agreement on Privileges and Immunities of the Council of Europe (Paris, 2 September 1949)
TextGeneral Agreement on Privileges and Immunities of the Council of Europe, signed in Paris on 2 September 1949 and coming into force on 10 September 1952. According to Article 1 of the Agreement, the Council of Europe possesses juridical personality.
‘Maison de l’Europe’ (Strasbourg, 1950-1977)
BildThe ‘Maison de l’Europe’ (House of Europe) in Strasbourg was the seat of the Council of Europe until 1977, before the Palais de l’Europe (Palace of Europe) was built.
Cartoon by Leger on the accession of the FRG to the Council of Europe (25 May 1950)
Bild‘Germany enters the Council of Europe.’ On 25 May 1950, the German cartoonist Leger speculates on whether the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) will become a full member of the Council of Europe.
Address given by Heinrich von Brentano (Bonn, 13 June 1950)
TextOn 13 June 1950, Heinrich von Brentano, President of the Parliamentary Party of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), gives an address in the Bundestag in support of the ratification of the Treaty establishing the Council of Europe, also known as the Treaty of London.
Interview with Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi: the birth of the Council of Europe (Vienna, 19 November 1971)
TonIn this interview recorded in 1971, Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, founder of the Paneuropean Union, refers to the establishment of the European Parliamentary Union (EPU) in 1947.
Interview with Paul Collowald (Sanem, 27 June 2002) — Excerpt: the establishment of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg
VideoIn this interview, Paul Collowald, former journalist on the daily newspaper Le Nouvel Alsacien and former European correspondent in Alsace for the daily newspaper Le Monde, describes the attitude of the people of Strasbourg towards the establishment of the Council of Europe in their city, with particular reference to the first sitting of the Consultative Assembly in the main lecture hall of the University on 10 August 1949.
The establishment of the Council of Europe
Ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary of the European flag (Strasbourg, 16 November 2005)
VideoOn 16 November 2005, in Strasbourg, the Council of Europe commemorates the 50th anniversary of the adoption, by its Committee of Ministers, of the blue flag with a circle of 12 gold stars, also adopted in June 1985 at the Milan European Council by the 10 Member States of the European Community. On this occasion, addresses are given by René van der Linden, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, José Manuel Durão Barroso, President of the European Commission, and Terry Davies, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.