Schuman Declaration

A 9 May 1950 French proposal, drafted by Jean Monnet and announced by Robert Schuman, to place Franco-German coal and steel under a joint authority, founding European integration.

Treaty of Paris (1951): The 1951 treaty signed by six states creating the European Coal and Steel Community, in force from 1952 to 2002. The Declaration's proposal was turned into this treaty within ten months.
International Authority for the Ruhr: The 1948 body of Western powers controlling Ruhr coal and steel output, which France dominated and Germany resented. Its unequal control of German industry showed pooling under joint authority was the workable alternative.
Jean Monnet: French economic planner who drafted the Declaration and later led the Coal and Steel Community's High Authority. Conceived the proposal and its famous opening framing during April 1950.
High Authority: The supranational executive of the Coal and Steel Community, empowered to bind member states without unanimity. The 'common high authority' was the Declaration's central institutional demand.
Franco-German reconciliation: The post-1945 transformation of France and Germany from three wars' enemies to strategic partners. The Declaration's stated aim: make war between the two countries materially impossible.
European Coal and Steel Community: The first supranational European authority, pooling coal and steel of six countries from 1952 under a High Authority. The organisation the Declaration proposed and which first tested supranational governance.
Saar Protectorate: French-administered territory detached from Germany after 1945, a persistent point of Franco-German friction. Territorial disputes over coal regions pushed France toward economic pooling instead of annexation.
Robert Schuman: French foreign minister from Lorraine who announced the plan on 9 May 1950 and lent it his name. Risked his career to front the proposal and secured cabinet approval.
Common market: An arrangement abolishing tariffs and quotas among members while allowing free movement of goods and factors. The Declaration demanded coal and steel circulate without duties or discrimination.
United States of Europe: The long-held vision of a federated Europe, invoked in the Declaration's closing lines. The proposal is framed as 'the first concrete foundation' of that federation.

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