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European history from 1300 to 1500
chapter 14 europe in the middle ages history of the world
European history from 1300 to 1500
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The story of Europe is a story that is worth telling for the simple fact that without the background of Europe, people will not understand the complexities in the creation of the Europe of yesterday and creation of the Europe today. This rich history cannot be ignored because of the close ties to the creation of the nations and the supranational institutions that have become the European Union and its trade partners. Without the background on the history of Europe the creation of this larger organization or supranational organization would be nearly impossible to understand the complexities of the current political, social and economic qualities within the EU. The history of a country, state or organization also helps us to understand the some aspects of the future of the EU. There are several key components of the European history that have led to the creation of the individual nations within the EU and the larger supranational Institution we call the European Union. As Curtis and Linser (2004) “The European Union is the most important development in European history since World War Two” (Curtis & Linser, 2004, p.4). And I tend to agree that this story line is the most important since it was the starting’s to one of the largest supranational organizations that shaped modern Europe and continues to shape it today. To start the European Union could not have been created without the nations that are part of this supranational organization. Many of the nations that make up the EU have been either long-term super powers, France, United Kingdom or Germany, but also areas plagued with conflict. The conflict is however the more important of the two. The conflict between Germany and the rest of Europe in WW2 was the sparks that created... ... middle of paper ... ...e that the citizens of the nations within the EU have trouble understanding themselves. However when the history it is broken apart, we can begin to understand where the EU origins are, and have some insight into the future of the organization, and the challenges that they face as the worlds largest Supranational Organization Works Cited Curtis, B., & Linser, W. (2004). NATO and EU Enlargement: Challenges for the New Europe . University of Washington. Retrieved December 10, 2013, from: http://jsis.washington.edu/cwes/file/nato_and_eu_curriculum.pdf Lynch, N (2013): Europeanization Beyond the Nation. moodle.uvic.ca. Retrieved December 10, 2013, from http://moodle.uvic.ca/file.php/26513/Lectures/W9_-_O29.pdf Enlarging Europe. (n.d.). BBC News. Retrieved December 11, 2013, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/europe/04/enlarging_europe/html/eu_expansion.stm
In his book “The Passage to Europe: How a Continent Became a Union”, Luuk van Middelaar, a Dutch historian and political philosopher, offers an original approach to analyze the political nature of the European Union through a philosophical and historical narrative from 1950s to the present. Indeed, “the truth of politics can only be understood over time” (p. 14). Through this narrative, the author illustrates the factors that have shaped the politic nature of the European Union and offers an alternative view of the origin and the future of the EU.
Both the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) and the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) are strategies developed by the European Union in regards to their dealings with the ‘outside’ world. The European Neighborhood Policy finds its obstacles in the once superpower of the Russians, and their conflicting neighborhood policy. Whereas the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy finds its obstacles through its numerous memberships which on the outside one would consider a boon of combined knowledge, but when their insurmountable differences become involved it is a burden. The European Union unfortunately has become known for being a hypocritical organization, playing the mantra ‘do as I say not as I do’. Moreover, the European Union takes its power for granted and assumes “itself as a superior embodiment of soft power and a model of peace, democracy and prosperity in the region.” After the Cold War, the EU set out to develop a new phase of expansion and integration. One of the topics related to the process of European Union integration is the concern of a European Identity, and what it means to be ‘European’. The EU has struggled to define itself as a “Multicultural community sharing a set of universal values” , conversely defining what it means by ‘multiculturalism’ has become the center of political conflict within its governments. The conundrum may be if the European Union wants to keep the European feeling, then why should it bring in a country that is not European? But then again what is European? The debate over this term is one that surrounds the history of Europe and the possible futures available for the European Union. Is the EU or any nations allowed within it defined by the geographic constructs shown on th...
It is well known that after World War II, states began to move away from the trends of nationalism that had brought on conflict in the first place. Across large parts of Europe, there is instead great support for federalism and get support for integration and interdependence. In 1952, the European Coal and Steel Community was created, followed by the establishment of European Economic Community in 1957. With allies being made and different treaties and agreements being signed, Europe was definitely becoming a ‘federation’. In 1973, Britain joins the EEC along with Denmark and Ireland. The European Union is then formally established by the Maastricht in 1993 and gains its 28th member, Croatia by July 2013. When a referendum was taken in the UK regarding joining the EU the vote was two-to-one in favour. The benefits of joining of the EU were clear. The UK would benefit not only in an economic sense but also politically and socially. However, in recent times, opinions have changed. There is now debate as to whether the UK should remain n member of the EU. More and more people are speaking in favour of the United Kingdom leaving the EU and standing on its own. While there are persuasive arguments for and against, it could still be argued that the argument against...
The European Union has been helped economically ever since World War II. Right after World War II’s end, Europe was struggling to hold on. The countries of the modern-day European Union thought it would be a good idea to come together and help each others struggling economy. To this day, this decision has had a very positive outcome on the EU’s economy. As shown in Diagram 1, the European Union combined together has the world’s highest GDP at 18.3 Trillion USD as compared to the United States’ 17.4 Trillion USD GDP and China’s 10.4 Trillion USD GDP. The idea
Thomassen, J. 2009. The Legitimacy of the European Union after Enlargement. In: Thomassen, J. Eds. The Legitimacy of the European Union after Enlargement. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 67-86.
When World War II ended the final remnants of the old European order lay in ruins. With such devastation wrought upon the continent twice in less than fifty years, it was remarkable that Europe managed to recover. What is even more remarkable is the Phoenix that rose from these ashes, and the new feelings of unity that accompanied the ending of the war. Those nations of western Europe began to do what decades ago had been unthinkable: develop the blueprints for a common system of the United Europe.
One of the original European institutions is the Commission. Though it was one of the originals, the institution has tremendously changed from what it used to be when the European integration first began. The Commission is a supranational body responsible for legislation proposals and policy implementation. It continues to work toward a more democratic European Union every day with the new legislations and laws that it passes. In this paper I will establish why I believe the EU Commission to be a supranational body, it’s relevance to the European Union and some of the strengths and weaknesses of the institution for the citizens of the European Union.
Europe will not run the 21st century because of a combination of economic, institutional, and cultural factors. However, for the purpose of this paper, I will focus on the economic aspects of European society that will impede EU ascendency. I do not believe that the EU will cease to exist in the coming century, but I do believe it will become obsolete because it will be unable to make the necessary changes to their demographic problems, defense policies, and economic culture in response to the increasing American ascendency. Europe has long been known as the continent home to the great powers of the world. From Caesar to Napoleon to the British Empire, the European empires have continuously been at the helm of the ship of progress. The wars of the 20th century however, left Europe in a wake of destruction and chaos period before. The continent was devastated and had little hope to recover. In this new era of European descent, the great American Era came into existence. The US, one of the remaining superpowers, became the helping hand that Europe needed. With the aid allocated by the Marshall Plan and the creation of programs and institutions, Europe had a future. The creation of the European Union (EU) united the European countries over the common goal of preventing war another war. The United States intended for these programs to be a stepping-stone to build the economic and institutional powers of Europe, because a stronger Europe was good for the US. However, instead of using these as a springboard to create self-reliant union, the EU remains reliant on US military and hard power to support them their social efforts.
Right after WWII, this world has seen two world wars in the last 50 years, with millions of people dying and, but It seemed that this world needed something to help prevent something from happening again without it being the last option. The European Union not only made war the last option for Europe it connected most of the countries to what is called a supranational. This is a kind of organization that allows countries to interconnected with one another, by connecting with one another this allows theses countries not only run as a single unit, but they provide for a better economy. The European Union has help avoid war within Europe over last few decades. With the interconnection of the European Union, It has not brought more cooperation among the members on the EU, also it has brought more economic dependency with different countries from within the EU, and outside the EU. The European Union is a model example on how different should be run. The EU improves EU, by interconnecting countries, which not only improves the economy, but brings more cooperation and peace among countries.
After WWII, many politically influential people saw a need to create some form of interdependence between the nation states of Europe as a means to preventing further war (Watts, 2008: p6). In 1951 Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg all signed the Treaty of Paris creating the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC); the beginnings of an integrated Europe which has seen many changes since its creation (Thody, 1997: p1). Today it has become the highly integrated European Union with 28 member states, 18 of which share a single currency (Archick, 2014: p1). The process of EU integration is a complex one, as can be seen in its history and will surely be seen in its future. There is no simple explanation that can successfully explain the growth of the EU from a economic community of six nation states to the political and economic union it has become today. However there are two competing theories for explaining EU integration that give opposing views on the matter, neo-functionalism and intergovernmentalism. In this essay I will examine both theories and attempt to reach a conclusion if either successfully explains EU integration.
Europe has a history of war and conflict that predates living memory and the idea of a united Europe is something that appears repeatedly in that history. Hitler, Napoleon, and the many Roman Emperors all sought a united Europe. Their quests although in many ways motivated by a horrifying desire for power sparked the minds of philosophers and other political thinkers to imagine Europe united in harmony and peace despite national differences. Today we have the European Union which is quite unique. After the horrors, bloodshed, and economic disaster of the twentieth century, in a desire for peace and harmony and economic and political prosperity twenty-seven states have limited their national sovereignty.2 With national interests and ambition still in mind these countries see the European Union and supranational governance and the benefits of peace and prosperity therein as something worthwhile. However, in the history of European integration there has been much conflict and Euroskepticism. Some see unity in diversity and diversity in unity as impossible, and the existence of differentiation in the EU as highly problematic. However, differentiation in the European Union’s integration process is not the hindrance it is often defined as, rather it creates further cooperation in Europe bringing the European Union closer to its objectives of peace, and economic and political growth, resulting in a more effective and efficient bureaucracy. Differentiation in the EU’s integration process has created more successful integration as it allows the nations who wish t...
The enlargement of the European Union (EU) in 2004 and 2007 has been termed as the largest single expansion of the EU with a total of 12 new member states – bringing the number of members to 27 – and more than 77 million citizens joining the Commission (Murphy 2006, Neueder 2003, Ross 2011). A majority of the new member states in this enlargement are from the eastern part of the continent and were countries that had just emerged from communist economies (EC 2009, Ross 2011), although overall, the enlargement also saw new member states from very different economic, social and political compared to that of the old member states (EC 2009, Ross 2011). This enlargement was also a historical significance in European history, for it saw the reunification of Europe since the Cold War in a world of increasing globalization (EC 2009, Mulle et al. 2013, Ross 2011). For that, overall, this enlargement is considered by many to have been a great success for the EU and its citizens but it is not without its problems and challenges (EC 2009, Mulle et al. 2013, Ross 2011). This essay will thus examine the impact of the 2004/2007 enlargements from two perspectives: firstly, the impact of the enlargements on the EU as a whole, and thereafter, how the enlargements have affected the new member states that were acceded during the 2004/2007 periods. Included in the essay will be the extent of their integration into the EU and how being a part of the Commission has contributed to their development as nation states. Following that, this essay will then evaluate the overall success of the enlargement process and whether the EU or the new member states have both benefited from the accessions or whether the enlargement has only proven advantageous to one th...
Europe fostered in modern times an ideology of nationalism and the struggle for it has been able to provide during the recent decades the “Euro-community” as an enlightening , conceptual and practical model of persistent hard worked for unity.
The Europea n Union is certainly one of the most powerful and organized organisations in the world, nowadays, it regroups about 500 millions people all over 28 countries in the European continent. On the contrary a very strange structure and some political and economical arrangements were done during the past years making the EU law sometime confusing and frustrating for some other countries. During this essay we will explain how the European Union is structured, explaining the most important institutions and how these institutions interact with each other knowing that sometimes exceptions are made for someone’s and not for others. Creating problem between parties. The aim of this essay is to understand the EU structure and assess how the EU laws are applied to such an organisation. We will answer the two questions basing our research and work on “Law for business students“ written by Alix Adams and some other resources as well.
A major stage of defining the most essential factors that led to the birth the nowadays European Union is to analyze every step that was carefully planned, therefore shaping this construction as a modern powerful alliance. “From the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and the European Economic Community (EEC) in the 1950s, European integration has been one of the most central phenomena in the contemporary history of (western) Europe” (cited from Wolfram Kaiser and Antonio Varsori, 2010). Hence, this construction firstly began in 1952 known as the ECSC with six members, mainly as an economic alliance between France and Germany, that would cooperate in the production of coal and steel and it would further develop into a political shape that had to toughen Franco-German solidarity, by removing the memories of the freshly ended war and to find a new way to integrate Europe as a social, economic and political community that would vastly change, improve and influence the present world.