The European vocation of Pierre Werner
Pierre Werner — a European vocation
The battle of the seats
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.
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.
‘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.
Report by the Luxembourg Government on the merger of the European executive bodies (Luxembourg, 31 March 1965)
TextOn 31 March 1965, in anticipation of the signing of the Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities, the Luxembourg Government publishes a report on the merger of the European executive bodies.
Decision of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States on the provisional location of the institutions (8 April 1965)
TextDecision of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States on the provisional location of certain institutions and departments of the Communities. In a meeting held on 8 April 1965 in Brussels, the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States decided provisionally to locate the institutions and other bodies of the European Communities in Strasbourg, Brussels and Luxembourg.
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).
Speech by Pierre Werner on the merger of the executives (1966)
TextIn a speech delivered in 1966, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister, refers to the merging of the executives and the location of certain institutions in Luxembourg.
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.
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.
The Luxembourg Compromise
Memorandum from Pierre Pescatore on Luxembourg’s attitude to the empty chair crisis (Luxembourg, 6 July 1965)
TextOn 6 July 1965, Pierre Pescatore, Secretary-General of the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs, sends a note to the Luxembourg diplomatic missions in Europe in which he sets out the position adopted by Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, in relation to the empty chair crisis and the political means by which it may be overcome.
Note from the German Foreign Office on the empty chair crisis (Bonn, 12 July 1965)
TextOn 12 July 1965, the German Foreign Office publishes the transcript of a telephone conversation held that day between Gerhard Schröder, German Foreign Minister, and Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, in order to review together the positions of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and Luxembourg on the empty chair crisis and the political means by which it can be overcome.
Address given by Pierre Werner on Luxembourg and the empty chair crisis (New York, 30 September 1965)
TextOn 30 September 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, gives an address to the Belgian Chamber of Commerce in New York in which he expresses, in particular, his faith in Luxembourg's future in Europe and outlines the principles which form the basis of a solution to the empty chair crisis.
Note from Nicolas Hommel concerning French views on the empty chair crisis (Paris, 10 November 1965)
TextOn 10 November 1965, Nicolas Hommel, Luxembourg Ambassador to France, sends a note to Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, in which he explains the arguments put forward by France to justify its empty chair policy.
Luxembourg Government reaction to the empty chair crisis (Luxembourg, 12 November 1965)
TextOn 12 November 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, informs the Belgian Foreign Minister, Paul-Henri Spaak, of the guiding principles of the Luxembourg Government regarding some of the issues raised by the empty chair crisis.
Address given by Pierre Werner on Luxembourg and the empty chair crisis (Luxembourg, 6 January 1966)
TextOn 6 January 1966, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, gives an address to the Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies in which he outlines, in particular, the causes of the empty chair crisis and sets out the position adopted by his country in order to overcome the political and institutional tensions which have divided France and its European Community partners since 30 June 1965.
‘By the fireside in Hotel Brasseur' from the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (19 January 1966)
TextOn 19 January 1966, the German daily newspaper the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung comments on the debates between the representatives of the Six during the first extraordinary Council in Luxembourg which seeks to put an end to the empty chair crisis.
Address given by Pierre Werner to the European Parliament (20 January 1966)
TextOn 20 January 1966, in Strasbourg, taking part in an exchange of views between the Community institutions on the empty chair crisis, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Foreign Minister and President-in-Office of the Council of Ministers of the European Communities, outlines the nature of the activities of the Council and the Communities since 30 June 1965, with particular regard to tariffs and agriculture. He then gives an account of the efforts made in Luxembourg on 17 and 18 January, by the Foreign Ministers of the Six, to resolve the crisis.
Council press release on the arrangements for cooperation between the Council and the Commission (29 January 1966)
TextOn 29 January 1966, after an extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Six in Luxembourg, chaired by Pierre Werner, a press release is issued on the decisions taken on future relations between the Council and the European Commission with a view to bringing an end to the empty chair crisis which has paralysed Community operations since the breakdown of negotiations on the night of 30 June 1965.
‘The Luxembourg Compromise' by Georges Levhat (RTL, 30 January 1966)
TonOn 29 January 1966, following the extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Six in Luxembourg, the Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Pierre Werner, describes the impact of the political compromise that put an end to the empty chair crisis which, for six months, had seen France boycotting intergovernmental meetings of Community bodies in Brussels.
'Match nul (A drawn game)' from the Luxemburger Wort (31 January 1966)
TextOn 31 January 1966, the daily newspaper Luxemburger Wort comments on the impact of the institutional compromise reached in Luxembourg on 29 January 1966, ending the empty chair crisis.
'Six crisis ends - but Bonn still anxious' from The Guardian (31 January 1966)
TextOn 31 January 1966, the British daily newspaper The Guardian does not pull any punches with regard to the impact of the Luxembourg Compromise.
Pierre Werner, Luxembourg and European meanderings
TextIn his memoirs, Pierre Werner, former Luxembourg Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, discusses the empty chair crisis of 1965–1966.
Pierre Werner, Luxembourg and European meanderings
TextIn his memoirs, Pierre Werner, former Prime Minister of Luxembourg, recalls the course of the negotiations which, in January 1966, led to the Luxembourg institutional compromise that enabled the empty chair crisis to be brought to an end.
Interview with Pierre Pescatore: the political implications of the Luxembourg Compromise (Luxembourg, 12 November 2003)
TonIn this interview, Pierre Pescatore, former Secretary-General of the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs, outlines Luxembourg's position on the empty chair crisis and defines the nature and the political implications of the Luxembourg Compromise.
The Luxembourg Compromise
Interview with Charles Rutten: the ‘empty chair’ crisis and the Luxembourg Compromise (The Hague, 29 November 2006)
VideoIn this interview, Charles Rutten, former Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the Council of the European Economic Community (EEC), discusses the course and the political implications of the ‘empty chair’ crisis.
Interview with Étienne Davignon (Brussels, 11 December 2007) — Excerpt: the negotiations leading to the Luxembourg Compromise
VideoIn this interview, Étienne Davignon, Head of Cabinet of the Belgian Foreign Minister, Paul-Henri Spaak, from 1964 to 1966, considers at length the negotiations between the Member States of the European Communities that led to the ‘Luxembourg Compromise’ on 29 January 1966, which put an end to the empty chair crisis that had begun on 30 June 1965.
Interview with Guy de Muyser: the question of the seats of the European institutions (Luxembourg, 16 June 2009)
VideoIn this interview, Guy de Muyser, diplomat in the Luxembourg Foreign Ministry from 1956 to 1969 and from 1980 to 1991, looks back on the negotiations associated with the seat of the Court of Justice of the European Communities in Luxembourg and the constant involvement of Pierre Werner, Minister of State and President of the Luxembourg Government from 1959 to 1974 and from 1979 to 1984, to make Luxembourg a permanent seat of the European institutions.
Luxembourg in the European integration process
‘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.
Address given by Pierre Werner on foreign policy in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (Luxembourg, 24 February 1965)
TextOn 24 February 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, gives an address to the Chamber of Deputies in which he sets out the position of the Luxembourg Government on the main European and international issues.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the 15th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration (Luxembourg, 7 May 1965)
TextOn 7 May 1965, on the 15th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and President of the Government, underlines the historic significance of the French Foreign Minister’s proposal, and emphasises the duty and the need to pursue his work.
Lecture given by Pierre Werner on Luxembourg’s position in the European Community (New York, 30 September 1965)
TextOn 30 September 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, sets out Luxembourg’s position within the European Community to the Belgian Chamber of Commerce in New York.
Note on the United Kingdom’s possible participation in political talks between the Six (Brussels, 23 February 1966)
TextOn 23 February 1966, the Luxemburg Ambassador to Brussels sends a note to the Luxembourg Foreign Minister, Pierre Werner, in which he informs him of the position of the Belgian Foreign Minister, Paul-Henri Spaak, on the possibility of a revival in political consultations between the Six, in the presence of the United Kingdom.
Statement by Pierre Werner to the European Parliament (Strasbourg, 28 June 1966)
TextOn 28 June 1966, in his capacity as President-in-Office of the Council of the European Communities, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, outlines to the European Parliament the activities undertaken by the Council during this term of office.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the foreign policy of the Luxembourg Government (Luxembourg, 18 November 1966)
TextOn 18 November 1966, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, gives an address to the Chamber of Deputies in which he sets out the Luxembourg Government’s position on the main European and international issues.
Address given by Pierre Werner at the inauguration of the new Luxembourg Stock Exchange (16 October 1969)
TextAddress given by Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Finance Minister, at the inauguration of the new premises of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange on 16 October 1969.
‘A country going from success to success’ from La Gazette de Lausanne (October–November 1969)
TextIn October and November 1969, La Gazette de Lausanne publishes a special report on the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and interviews Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Finance Minister, on the subject of the country as an international financial centre.
Pierre Werner and the European integration process — founding texts
Address given by Pierre Werner on foreign policy in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (Luxembourg, 24 February 1965)
TextOn 24 February 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, gives an address to the Chamber of Deputies in which he sets out the position of the Luxembourg Government on the main European and international issues.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the 15th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration (Luxembourg, 7 May 1965)
TextOn 7 May 1965, on the 15th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and President of the Government, underlines the historic significance of the French Foreign Minister’s proposal, and emphasises the duty and the need to pursue his work.
Lecture given by Pierre Werner on Luxembourg’s position in the European Community (New York, 30 September 1965)
TextOn 30 September 1965, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, sets out Luxembourg’s position within the European Community to the Belgian Chamber of Commerce in New York.
Statement by Pierre Werner to the European Parliament (Strasbourg, 28 June 1966)
TextOn 28 June 1966, in his capacity as President-in-Office of the Council of the European Communities, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, outlines to the European Parliament the activities undertaken by the Council during this term of office.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the foreign policy of the Luxembourg Government (Luxembourg, 18 November 1966)
TextOn 18 November 1966, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Foreign Minister, gives an address to the Chamber of Deputies in which he sets out the Luxembourg Government’s position on the main European and international issues.
Address given by Pierre Werner at the inauguration of the new Luxembourg Stock Exchange (16 October 1969)
TextAddress given by Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Finance Minister, at the inauguration of the new premises of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange on 16 October 1969.
‘A country going from success to success’ from La Gazette de Lausanne (October–November 1969)
TextIn October and November 1969, La Gazette de Lausanne publishes a special report on the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and interviews Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Finance Minister, on the subject of the country as an international financial centre.
Pierre Werner and the economic and monetary question — founding texts
Pierre Werner, The contribution of economics to our intellectual life and national economy (December 1939)
TextIn December 1939, Pierre Werner publishes an article in the journal of the Luxembourg Association of Catholic University Students, Academia. He examines the contribution that economics can make to intellectual life and to the national economy.
Lecture by Pierre Werner on the contribution of European finance and currencies to economic integration (Strasbourg, 21 November 1960)
TextAt the invitation of the Lower Rhine Chamber of Commerce, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State, President of the Government and Finance Minister, gives a lecture on 21 November 1960 in Strasbourg entitled The contribution of European finance and currencies to economic integration and continental solidarity, in which he sets out the possible ways in which currency and finance might stimulate a movement towards economic integration, and the laws that should govern such a process.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the issues surrounding financial integration in Europe (Brussels, 27 November 1962)
TextOn 27 November 1962, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State, President of the Government and Finance Minister, gives an address in Brussels to the members of the Association des amitiés belgo-luxembourgeoises in which he sets out his ideas on financial integration in Europe.
Address given by Pierre Werner at the inauguration of the Robert Schuman Monument, the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge and the European Centre (Luxembourg, 24 October 1966)
TextOn 24 October 1966, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and President of the Government, gives an address at the ceremony held in Luxembourg City for the inauguration of the Robert Schuman Monument, the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge and the administrative building for the European institutions.
Address by Pierre Werner entitled ‘The outlook for European financial and monetary policy’ (Saarbrücken, 26 January 1968)
TextOn 26 January 1968, Pierre Werner, Minister of State and President of the Luxembourg Government, gives an address in Saarbrücken at the CDU economic congress entitled ‘The outlook for European financial and monetary policy’. In this address, he sets out a ‘five-point action plan’ for European monetary integration based on the creation of a European unit of account, fixed exchange rates between European currencies, consultation, and internal and external solidarity between the Member States of the European Communities. He also raises the idea of a monetary cooperation fund.
‘Luxembourg proposes a monetary policy for the Six’ from L’Agence économique et financière (28 January 1968)
TextOn 28 January 1968, the daily newspaper L’Agence économique et financière comments on the study by Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Finance Minister, entitled ‘Prospects for a European financial and monetary policy’.
Pierre Werner and the economic and monetary question — founding texts
Letter from Louis Camu to Pierre Werner (Brussels, 2 February 1968)
TextOn 2 February 1968, Louis Camu, President of the Bank of Brussels, congratulates Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Finance Minister, on his presentation entitled ‘Prospects for a European financial and monetary policy’ given on 16 January 1968 at the CDU Economic Congress in Saarbrücken.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the Benelux and the prospects of European financial policy (The Hague, 1 April 1968)
TextCommenting on the completion of the customs union between the Six, due to take place on 1 July 1968, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and President of the Government, gives an address to the Benelux Committee, meeting on 1 April 1968 in The Hague, in which he outlines the prospects of European financial policy for the Benelux.
'Why a European currency?', from Communauté européenne (October 1968)
TextIn the October 1968 issue of the monthly publication Communauté européenne, the French journalist, Jean Lecerf, compares the Werner Plan with the plan proposed by the Action Committee for the United States of Europe (ACUSE), both of which call on the Six to adopt a single currency.
‘European monetary policy' from Nieuw Europa (June 1969)
TextIn June 1969, Pierre Werner, Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Luxembourg, announces his ideas on the European Communities’ monetary policy in Nieuw Europa, the monthly bulletin of the Dutch Section of the European Movement.
Statement by Pierre Werner at the IMF Annual Meeting (Washington, 2 October 1969)
TextOn 2 October 1969, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and Finance Minister, gives an address at the Annual Meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in his capacity as Governor of the IMF for Luxembourg.
Budget address by Pierre Werner (Luxembourg, 11 November 1969)
TextOn 11 November 1969, as the draft state budget for the 1970 financial year is presented to the Chamber of Deputies, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State, President of the Government and Finance Minister, gives an address on the short- and medium-term programmes and projections, the economic and financial climate, currency, savings and credit.
Pierre Werner, Europe on the road to monetary union (Luxembourg, 28 February 1970)
TextOn 28 February 1970, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State, President of the Government and Finance Minister, submits a new version of the text entitled The outlook for European financial and monetary policy, originally published in January 1968. In this new version, he proposes a five-point action plan for the achievement by stages of economic and monetary union. This document is known as the Luxembourg plan for monetary integration, or the first Werner Plan.
Presentation by Pierre Werner on the need for a European monetary union and the prospects for success of such a union (Munich, 18 March 1971)
TextOn 18 March 1971, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Finance Minister and Minister of State, gives an address in Munich in which he emphasises the need to establish a European economic and monetary union and outlines the prospects for success of such a union.
Statement by Pierre Werner at the Annual Meeting of the IMF Governors (Washington, 30 September 1971)
TextOn 30 September 1971, Pierre Werner, Governor of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Luxembourg, gives an address at the Annual Meeting of the IMF Governors in Washington.
Address given by Pierre Werner on Europe’s response to the crisis and the monetary reform (Liège, 1 October 1971)
TextOn 1 October 1971, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Finance Minister and Minister of State, gives a lecture at the University of Liège in which he outlines the introduction of the first stage of European economic and monetary union and analyses the crisis facing Europe.
Address by Pierre Werner at the ceremony for the presentation of the Robert Schuman Medal (Montigny-lès-Metz, 16 October 1971)
TextOn 16 October 1971, the Association of Friends of President Robert Schuman presents Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Minister of State and President of the Government, with a gold medal struck with the profile of Robert Schuman, to mark his contribution to the European integration process.
Address given by Pierre Werner on economic and monetary union as a step towards a political Europe (Davos, 28 January 1972)
TextOn 28 January 1971, at the first World Economic Forum in Davos, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Minister of State, sets out his vision on the establishment of economic and monetary union as a step towards a political Europe.
Address given by Pierre Werner on the circulation of productive capital in Europe (Paris, 3 February 1972)
TextOn 3 February 1972, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Minister of State, gives an address at the University of Paris on the circulation of productive capital in Europe.
Lecture by Pierre Werner on economic and monetary union as a step towards a political Europe (Luxembourg, 11 February 1972)
TextOn 11 February 1972, at a meeting of the European Movement Luxembourg, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Finance Minister and Minister of State, sets out his vision of the establishment of economic and monetary union as a step towards a political Europe.
Address by Pierre Werner at the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe (18 May 1972)
TextOn 11 May 1972, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Finance Minister and Minister of State, gives an address to the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe in which he outlines the various stages for a European economic and monetary union.
Address given by Pierre Werner on European monetary union, the dollar and international reform (Paris, 12 November 1973)
TextOn 12 November 1973, at the Atlantic Institute for International Affairs in Paris, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Minister of State, gives an address on European monetary union, the dollar and international reform.
Address given by Pierre Werner to the Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg, 30 October 1974)
TextOn 30 October 1974, in the midst of the energy crisis, inflation and international monetary chaos, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Minister of State, gives an address to the Chamber of Deputies in which he expresses the Luxembourg Government’s concern at the possible repercussions of the crisis on the economic and monetary integration process.
Pierre Werner, From the Werner Plan to the European Monetary System (EMS) (1980)
TextIn 1980, Pierre Werner, Luxembourg Prime Minister, gives a presentation to the Royal Institute for International Relations in Brussels entitled From the Werner Plan to the European Monetary System (EMS).
Address by Pierre Werner on Luxembourg in the international financial environment (Luxembourg, 4 June 1983)
TextOn 4 June 1983, the Luxembourg Prime Minister, Pierre Werner, gives an address at the 25th Congress of the Association Cambiste Internationale (ACI — the Financial Markets Association) on Luxembourg in the international financial environment.