2020 Event European construction United Kingdom
Brexit
On 31 January the United Kingdom becomes the first state to leave the European Union.
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.
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
2020
2024
2029
16 events
2000 2024
European integration 12 events2020 Event Contemporary period Belarus
2020 protests
Contestation of the presidential election is repressed; the EU does not recognise the result.
2020 Event European construction
NextGenerationEU
Facing the pandemic, the Union borrows 750 billion jointly: a major break in its budgetary workings.
2020 Event Contemporary period North Macedonia
NATO accession of North Macedonia
The country becomes the 30th member of the Atlantic Alliance.
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 Contemporary period Finland
NATO accession of Finland
On 4 April Finland doubles the Alliance’s land border with Russia.
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 Contemporary period Sweden
NATO accession of Sweden
On 7 March Sweden becomes the 32nd ally, ending two centuries of neutrality.
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.