Robert
Schuman was born in Luxembourg in 1886. Schuman was technically a
German national, as his father was from German-held Lorraine. Having
served as an auxiliary with the German army during the World War I,
Schuman became an official French citizen after Lorraine reverted
to France in 1918, and went on to play a leading role in French politics.
A good example for explaining the history of Europe.
He studied law before launching
his political career in 1919, when he represented Thionville in the
French National Assembly.
Schuman was elected Prime
Minister in 1947 as a member of the Mouvement Républicain Populaire
(MRP), and held the post of Foreign Minister from 1948 until 1953.
It was during this time
that he presented the proposal which was to lay the foundations for
a European Union. On 9 May 1950, following collaboration with Jean
Monnet, Robert Schuman put forward a proposal for a body which would
jointly manage the French and German coal and steel industries. This
proposal to pool resources formed the basis for the European Coal
and Steel Community which was subsequently established in 1951. It
became known as the Schuman plan.
As Europe progressed towards
integration, two further organisations were established - the European
Atomic Energy Community and the European Economic Community. When
a Joint Assembly was formed in 1958, which later became the European
Parliament, Robert Schuman was elected its first president.
Robert
Schuman died in 1963.
History
of the European Union: Integration Process and European Citizenship
