The Members of the Council of Europe
The Members of the Council of Europe
The Council of Europe
‘The Council of Europe' explained by Professor Pierre Gerbet (Paris, 23 January 2004)
Audio extractPierre Gerbet, Emeritus University Professor at the Paris Institute of Political Science, outlines the origins, powers and responsibilities, operating method and political development of the Council of Europe.
‘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.
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.
Signing of the Statute of the Council of Europe (London, 5 May 1949)
ImageOn 5 May 1949 in London, Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, signs the Statute of the Council of 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.
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.
Address given by Ernest Bevin (London, 5 May 1949)
Audio extractErnest Bevin, British Foreign Secretary, delivers the inaugural address at 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)
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.
The creation of the Council of Europe (1949)
MapOn 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.
Organisation and operation of the Council of Europe (5 May 1949)
DiagramDiagram showing the organisation and operation of the Council of Europe according to the provisions of the Statute of the Council of Europe of 5 May 1949.
‘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.
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.
Opening of the inaugural sitting of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg, 10 August 1949)
VideoOn 10 August 1949, the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe meets for the first time in Strasbourg. The following day, the Belgian Socialist delegate and former Foreign Minister, Paul-Henri Spaak, is elected President of the Assembly.
‘What may we expect from the European Assembly?' from Le Figaro (10 August 1949)
TextOn 10 August 1949, the day of the first session of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, the French daily newspaper Le Figaro emphasises the symbolic value of the institution, whilst also highlighting its limited political influence.
'The baby is already crying' from Der Spiegel (18 August 1949)
TextOn 18 August 1949, the German weekly news magazine Der Spiegel comments on the first sitting of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, held in Strasbourg on 10 August 1949.
'An important new beginning' from Le Populaire (8 August 1949)
TextOn 8 August 1949, Léon Blum, founder of the French Socialist daily newspaper Le Populaire, expresses his enthusiasm following the creation of the Council of Europe, placing particular emphasis on the role that European Socialism will play in the work of the future Assembly.
The establishment of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg, 10 August 1949)
ImageThe constituent meeting of the Council of Europe takes place on 10 August 1949. Among those taking part are Paul-Henri Spaak, Carlo Sforza, Edouard Herriot, Ernest Bevin and Robert Schuman.
‘The first European Parliament’ from Die Zeit (18 August 1949)
TextOn 18 August 1949, the German weekly newspaper Die Zeit expresses its enthusiasm for the establishment of the Council of Europe and emphasises the key role of those who are to comprise the future Consultative Assembly, at the same time stressing the importance of associating Germany with the forthcoming undertaking.
Cartoon by Pictor on the question of the FRG’s accession to the Council of Europe (18 August 1949)
Image‘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.
‘Discord within the Council of Europe’ from Die Zeit (25 August 1949)
TextOn 25 August 1949, commenting on the work of the newly founded Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, the German weekly newspaper Die Zeit draws attention to the weighty legacy of the Nation-State concept as the establishment of a united Europe is debated, and it calls on the delegates to make an active commitment to European integration.
Cartoon by Leger on the accession of the FRG to the Council of Europe (25 May 1950)
Image‘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.
Accession of Germany to the Council of Europe (Strasbourg, 2 May 1951)
ImageOn 2 May 1951, the Federal Republic of Germany becomes a full member of the Council of Europe. On the margins of the meeting of the Council of Ministers, the French delegate, Pierre Henri Teitgen (standing, centre) congratulates the German Chancellor, Konrad Adenauer (seated), watched by Walter Hallstein, Junior Minister in the German Foreign Ministry (standing, left).
The Council of Europe
Cartoon by Low on the Council of Europe (26 September 1952)
ImageIn September 1952, the British cartoonist, David Low, takes an ironic look at the joint efforts of Paul-Henri Spaak (left), Belgian Foreign Minister, and Robert Schuman (right), French Foreign Minister, to persuade their British counterpart, Anthony Eden (centre), to take part in the first steps of the Council of Europe, despite his fears and hesitations.
‘Maison de l’Europe’ (Strasbourg, 1950-1977)
ImageThe ‘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.
Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, I chose Europe
TextIn his memoirs, Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, founder of the European Parliamentary Union (EPU) in 1947, describes the atmosphere at the opening of the inaugural sitting of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe on 10 August 1949.
The establishment of the Council of Europe
VideoThis archive film shows the early days of the Council of Europe in 1949 following the Congress of the European Movements held in The Hague in May 1948.
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.
Interview with Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi: the birth of the Council of Europe (Vienna, 19 November 1971)
Audio extractIn 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.
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.
Interview with Gaston Thorn: the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe and the WEU Assembly (Luxembourg, 6 February 2006)
Audio extractIn this interview, Gaston Thorn, former Member of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe and of the Assembly of Western European Union (WEU), refers to the role of these deliberative assemblies in the development of a European spirit and of an awareness of the political, economic and military implications of a united Europe.