Introduction, Summary and Consequences

Abstract

The idea of European unity goes back far into the past. However, for centuries the impetus of the nation state with its absolute sovereignty predominated. In the twentieth century this tendency has changed. The period between the world wars, with its chaos in economic and monetary areas, was already characterised by a strengthening of the idea of a united Europe. After the Second World War and the resulting division of Europe into an eastern and a western part, the motives were strong enough. The countries of Western Europe decided to unite in a number of international regional organisations. An important reason for this was the bad experience with the protectionism of the 1930s as well as the necessity of economic recovery after the destruction that had been caused by the war. Furthermore, the desire of the Western European states to eliminate war forever (the relationship between West Germany and France) and the need to combine forces against the danger from the communist world (the Cold War) played an important role.