1949 Institution European construction
Council of Europe
Ten states found in London the first European political organisation, matrix of the Convention on Human Rights.
A shared history
European construction did not begin in 1950. This thread links the ancient inheritance, the Judeo-Christian matrix and the contemporary Union.
326
events
3600 BC
earliest marker
46
countries covered
0
already discussed
Event density
One century per bar before 1500, one decade after: archives are not evenly spread.
1940 :
1 event
1950 :
5 events
1960 :
4 events
1970 :
6 events
1980 :
7 events
1990 :
9 events
2000 :
12 events
2010 :
8 events
2020 :
12 events
Ancient Greece
Early Middle Ages
Renaissance
Enlightenment
Concert of Europe
European integration
Rome
High and Late Middle Ages
Reformation and wars of religion
Age of revolutions
World wars
Cold War
1940
1984
2029
64 events
1925 1949
World wars 1 event1950 1974
European integration 13 events1950 Text European construction
Schuman Declaration
On 9 May France proposes placing coal and steel under a common authority. Community Europe is born of a material pooling.
1951 Treaty European construction
Treaty of Paris — ECSC
Six states create the European Coal and Steel Community, the continent’s first supranational institution.
1952 War European construction Luxembourg
Seat of the High Authority
Europe’s first supranational institution settles in Luxembourg.
1957 Event European construction
Treaties of Rome
The EEC and Euratom are established; the common market and the four freedoms are laid down.
1957 Text European construction Belgium
The Spaak Report
Belgian Paul-Henri Spaak drafts the preparatory text of the Treaties of Rome.
1963 Treaty European construction France
Élysée Treaty
De Gaulle and Adenauer seal Franco-German reconciliation, the institutional engine of integration.
1963 Treaty European construction Türkiye
Ankara Agreement
Association with the EEC explicitly envisages an accession perspective.
1963 Text European construction
Van Gend en Loos judgment
The Court of Justice asserts direct effect: Community law creates rights for citizens themselves.
1968 Event European construction
Customs union
Internal tariffs disappear eighteen months ahead of schedule.
1973 Event European construction
First enlargement
Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom join the Communities, which grow from six to nine.
1973 Event European construction United Kingdom
Accession of the United Kingdom to the Communities
After two French vetoes, the United Kingdom enters the EEC with Denmark and Ireland.
1973 Event European construction Denmark
Accession of Denmark to the Communities
The first Nordic member, Denmark enters alongside the United Kingdom and Ireland.
1973 Event European construction Ireland
Accession of Ireland to the Communities
Ireland joins with the United Kingdom and begins its economic transformation.
1975 1999
European integration 18 events1975 Treaty European construction Finland
Helsinki Final Act
Thirty-five states sign a text placing human rights at the heart of détente.
1979 Event European construction
First European elections
For the first time citizens directly elect their MEPs; Simone Veil chairs the assembly.
1981 Event European construction Greece
Accession of Greece to the Communities
As the tenth member, Greece anchors its restored democracy in Community Europe.
1985 Treaty European construction
Schengen Agreement
Five states sign on the Moselle an agreement progressively abolishing internal border controls.
1986 Treaty European construction
Single European Act
The internal market is scheduled for 1993 and qualified majority voting extended.
1986 Event European construction Portugal
Accession of Portugal to the Communities
Portugal joins the EEC on the same day as Spain and begins rapid economic catch-up.
1986 Event European construction Spain
Accession of Spain to the Communities
With Portugal, Spain joins the EEC: southern enlargement consecrates democratisation.
1989 Event European construction
Fall of the Berlin Wall
9 November opens German reunification and, in time, that of the continent.
1989 Event European construction Hungary
Pan-European Picnic
On 19 August Hungary opens its border with Austria: the first breach in the Iron Curtain.
1992 Treaty European construction
Maastricht Treaty
The European Union is created, with European citizenship and the timetable for the single currency.
1992 Event European construction Switzerland
Rejection of the EEA
The people reject the European Economic Area; the bilateral path prevails.
1994 Event European construction Norway
Second rejection of membership
52.2 % of Norwegians reject Union entry; the EEA takes over.
1995 Event European construction Sweden
Accession of Sweden to the Union
With Austria and Finland, Sweden joins the EU; it will reject the euro by referendum in 2003.
1995 Event European construction Liechtenstein
EEA accession
The principality joins the European internal market without entering the Union.
1995 Event European construction Austria
Accession of Austria to the Union
Austria joins the EU by referendum and becomes a pivot towards Central Europe.
1995 Event European construction
Nordic enlargement
Austria, Finland and Sweden bring the Union to fifteen members.
1999 Event European construction
Birth of the euro
Eleven currencies are irrevocably fixed; the European Central Bank takes up its functions.
1999 Treaty European construction Türkiye
Candidate status for Türkiye
The Helsinki European Council recognises Türkiye as a candidate country.
2000 2024
European integration 28 events2002 Event European construction
Euro notes and coins
Three hundred million Europeans change currency on 1 January.
2002 Event European construction Montenegro
Unilateral euro adoption
Without being in the euro area, the country makes the euro its official currency.
2004 Event European construction
The big bang enlargement
Ten states, eight of them formerly communist, join the Union: the continent’s division ends.
2004 Event European construction Cyprus
Accession of Cyprus to the Union
Cyprus joins the EU; the acquis remains suspended in the northern part of the island.
2004 Event European construction Slovenia
Accession of Slovenia to the Union
The only former Yugoslav republic in the great enlargement of 2004.
2004 Event European construction Poland
Accession of Poland to the Union
With nine other states, Poland joins the EU: the political reunification of the continent.
2004 Event European construction Malta
Accession of Malta to the Union
The smallest member state joins the EU and adopts the euro four years later.
2007 Event European construction Romania
Accession of Romania to the Union
With Bulgaria, Romania joins the EU and becomes its eastern frontier on the Black Sea.
2007 Event European construction Slovenia
Euro adoption in Slovenia
The first of the 2004 new member states to join the single currency.
2008 Event European construction Switzerland
Schengen entry
Without Union membership, Switzerland abolishes its border controls.
2009 Treaty European construction
Treaty of Lisbon
The Charter of Fundamental Rights becomes binding; Parliament becomes a full co-legislator.
2009 Event European construction Slovakia
Euro adoption in Slovakia
The first Visegrád economy to join the euro area.
2010 Disaster European construction
Sovereign debt crisis
The euro area urgently creates unprecedented financial solidarity mechanisms.
2011 Treaty European construction Andorra
Monetary agreement with the EU
The principality is authorised to mint its own euro coins.
2012 Treaty European construction Serbia
Candidate status for Serbia
Serbia becomes a Union candidate; negotiations open in 2014.
2013 Event European construction Croatia
Accession of Croatia to the Union
As the twenty-eighth member state, Croatia is the first Western Balkan country to enter.
2014 Event European construction Latvia
Euro adoption in Latvia
The lats gives way to the euro five years after one of Europe’s severest financial crises.
2015 Disaster European construction
Migration crisis
More than a million asylum seekers arrive in a single year; Schengen is put to the test.
2016 Event European construction
British referendum
51.9 % of voters choose to leave the Union: a first in the history of European construction.
2018 Treaty European construction North Macedonia Greece
Prespa Agreement
The compromise with Greece over the name unlocks thirty years of diplomatic deadlock.
2020 Event European construction United Kingdom
Brexit
On 31 January the United Kingdom becomes the first state to leave the European Union.
2020 Event European construction
NextGenerationEU
Facing the pandemic, the Union borrows 750 billion jointly: a major break in its budgetary workings.
2022 Treaty European construction Ukraine
Candidate status for Ukraine
Four months after the Russian invasion began, the European Council grants candidate status.
2022 War European construction
War in Ukraine
The Russian invasion brings sanctions, the reception of millions of refugees and candidacies from Ukraine and Moldova.
2022 Treaty European construction Moldova
Candidate status for Moldova
On 23 June Moldova becomes a Union candidate at the same time as Ukraine.
2022 Event European construction Albania
Opening of negotiations
Union accession talks open, jointly with North Macedonia.
2023 Event European construction Croatia
Euro and Schengen
On 1 January Croatia joins the single currency and the free movement area on the same day.
2024 Event European construction
2024 European elections
720 members are elected in 27 states; the right and sovereignist groups gain ground.
2025 2049
European integration 4 events2025 Event European construction Romania
Full Schengen entry
Land border controls are lifted on 1 January, thirteen years after the first application.
2025 Event European construction
Schengen at 29
The area has twenty-nine members: twenty-five Union states and four EFTA neighbours. Two member states remain outside — Ireland, by choice, and Cyprus, which has yet to join.
2026 Event European construction Bulgaria
Euro adoption in Bulgaria
On 1 January the lev gives way to the euro: Bulgaria becomes the area’s 21st member.
2026 Event European construction
Euro area at 21
Twenty-one of the twenty-seven member states now share the currency. Of the six outside, only Denmark holds an opt-out: the other five are legally bound to join, with no deadline.