Preparations for the Hague Congress
Preparations for the Hague Congress
Preparing the work of the Hague Congress
Note from Henri Brugmans on the organisation of the Hague Congress (November 1947)
TextIn November 1947, Henri Brugmans, the Dutch President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), drafts a note which sets out the objectives of the Congress of Europe in The Hague and establishes the criteria to be taken into account for the composition of the various national delegations and observers.
‘21–24 May 1948, the States General of Europe' from Une Semaine dans le Monde (10 January 1948)
TextOn 10 January 1948, in the French weekly publication Une Semaine dans le Monde, Alexandre Marc, Director of the Institutional Department of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), publishes an article in which he identifies the issues involved in the Congress of Europe held in The Hague in May 1948.
"Geeintes Europa" in Luxemburger Wort (13. Februar 1948)
TextAm 13. Februar 1948 berichtet die Tageszeitung Luxemburger Wort über die Bemühungen der Föderalisten für die europäische Einigung und erläutert die wichtigsten Zielsetzungen dieser Einigung.
Invitation to attend the Congress of Europe in The Hague issued by Joseph Retinger (February 1948)
TextIn February 1948, the Polish federalist Joseph Retinger, in 1946 co-founder, with the former Belgian Prime Minister Paul Van Zeeland, of the Independent League for Economic Cooperation (ILEC) and Secretary-General of the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity, invites all ardent supporters of the European cause to attend the Hague Congress (7–10 May 1948), of which the primary aim is to launch the European Movement.
‘A major step towards the establishment of the United States of Europe’, from the Luxemburger Wort (24 March 1948)
TextOn 24 March 1948, the daily newspaper Luxemburger Wort welcomes the commitment of a number of players from civil and political society to the establishment of a federal Europe.
Letter from Joseph Retinger on attendance at the Congress of Europe in The Hague
TextIn March 1948, Joseph Retinger, Secretary of the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity, sends to Morgan Phillips, Secretary of the British Labour Party, a letter in which he informs him of the decision to invite the Committee of the Socialist International to the Congress of Europe in The Hague.
Letter from Ernest B. Steffan to Joseph Retinger (Lausanne, 3 April 1948)
TextOn 3 April 1948, Ernest Steffan, Secretary in Romandy of the Europa Union movement, sends a letter to Joseph Retinger, Secretary-General of the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity, in which he describes his plan for the performance of a symphonic poem in favour of European unity at the Congress of Europe in The Hague.
Letter from Ronald Mackay on the EPU’s participation in the Hague Congress (London, 13 April 1948)
TextOn 13 April 1948, Ronald Mackay, British Labour MP and Vice-President of the European Parliamentary Union (EPU), writes to Joseph Retinger, Secretary-General of the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity, to inform him of the EPU’s recent decision to attend the Congress of Europe in The Hague.
Letter from Joseph Retinger to Guy Mollet (London, 15 April 1948)
TextOn 15 April 1948, Joseph Retinger, Secretary-General of the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity, sends to Guy Mollet, Secretary-General of the French Socialist Party, a letter in which he refutes the criticism of the Congress of Europe held in the Hague made by the British Labour Party and the European Socialists.
Note on the state of preparations for the Hague Congress (Spring 1948)
TextIn early spring 1948, the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity establishes a Committee of Patrons to be responsible both for emphasising the representative character of the Congress of Europe in The Hague and for its practical organisation.
Letter from Joseph Retinger on the EPU’s attendance at the Hague Congress (London, 15 April 1948)
TextOn 15 April 1948, Joseph Retinger, Secretary-General of the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity, sends to Ronald Mackay, Labour MP and leader of the British Section of the European Parliamentary Union (EPU), a letter notifying him of the reluctance of some European activists to give Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, founder of the Pan-European Movement and leader of the EPU, an overly conspicuous position at the Congress of Europe held in May in The Hague.
Note from Alexandre Marc on the objectives of the Hague Congress (April 1948)
TextIn April 1948, Alexandre Marc, French Head of the Institutional Department of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), identifies the main objectives and focus of the Congress of Europe in The Hague, which he will attend in May as rapporteur of the Cultural Committee.
Provisional programme of the Congress of Europe in The Hague (April 1948)
TextIn April 1948, the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity drafts the provisional programme of the Congress of Europe due to be held one month later in The Hague.
‘Towards European Union’ from L’Aveyron libre (17 April 1948)
TextOn 17 April 1948, in an article in the newspaper L’Aveyron libre, Paul Ramadier, former French Prime Minister, welcomes the progress made over the past few months on the road to European unity.
‘No European defeatism' from Le Figaro (29 April 1948)
TextOn 29 April 1948, commenting on the victory of Christian Democracy in the recent parliamentary elections in Italy, the French daily newspaper Le Figaro launches an appeal for European unity and expresses its hope that the Congress of Europe in The Hague will be a resounding success.
‘The Congress of Europe’ from Le Soir (30 April 1948)
TextOn 30 April 1948, the Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir outlines the issues involved in the Congress of Europe in The Hague during an interview with the former Minister, Julius Hoste, Chairman of the Belgian Committee of the Independent League for Economic Cooperation (ILEC).
Note by Alexandre Marc on the Hague Congress (May 1948)
TextIn May 1948, describing the issues involved in the Congress of Europe held in The Hague, Alexandre Marc, Director of the Institutional Department of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), drafts a note in which he places particular emphasis on the federalist notions of European unity and outlines the doctrinal differences between the various pro-European movements.
‘Raymond Silva: European unity has its requirements' from Cahiers du Monde Nouveau (May 1948)
TextIn May 1948, Raymond Silva, Secretary-General of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), outlines the issues involved in the Congress of Europe in The Hague and emphasises the importance of federal principles and of public support in the building of a united Europe.
Note from Alexandre Marc on the political implications of the Hague Congress (May 1948)
TextIn May 1948, Alexandre Marc, Head of the Institutional Department of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), identifies the political implications of the forthcoming Congress of Europe in The Hague and calls, in particular, for the establishment of a Grand European Council and a European Action Committee to ensure the effective implementation of the resolutions adopted at the Congress in a federalist direction.
Note from the Organising Committee on the final preparations for the Hague Congress (3 May 1948)
TextOn 3 May 1948, the International Committee of the Movements for European Unity finalises the last preparations for the Congress of Europe, which is due to open four days later in The Hague.
‘European reality’ from L’Aveyron Libre (15 May 1948)
TextOn 15 May 1948, in the weekly publication L’Aveyron Libre, mouthpiece of the French Section of the Workers’ International (SFIO), Paul Ramadier, former French Prime Minister, outlines the ideological notions which divide the unionists and the federalists in terms of European integration.