Diagram showing the organisation and operation of the Council of Europe according to the provisions of the Statute of the Council of Europe of 5 May 1949.

This article, published in a supplement to the Council of Europe News in July 1955, outlines the procedure for the drafting and adoption of European agreements through the combined action of the Committee of Ministers and the Consultative Assembly, as well as the procedure for implementation carried out by national authorities of the Member States.

Functional Chart of the Council of Europe in 1950, when the organisation comprised 14 member States following the accession of the Federal Republic of Germany in July 1950 and after the establishment of a Joint Committee in August 1950.

This excerpt from the special message of the Committee of Ministers, dated 20 May 1954, transmitting to the Consultative Assembly the Programme of Work of the Council of Europe, deals with the respective roles of the Assembly and the Committee as well as the relations between these two organs within the organisation.

On 4 May 1992, during the ceremony at which he laid the foundation stone for the Palace of Human Rights in Strasbourg, François Mitterrand addresses the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. The President of the French Republic suggests organising summits involving Heads of State or Government of the member States of the Council of Europe.

Extract from the minutes of the Conference on the establishment of a Council of Europe, held at St James’s Palace in London from 3 to 5 May 1949, concerning the issue of voting in the Committee of Ministers.

View of the conference room at the inaugural meeting, in August 1949, of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe held in the Strasbourg Town Hall.

In August 1949, Count Carlo Sforza chairs the Italian delegation at the inaugural meeting of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers held in the Strasbourg Town Hall.

On 2 August 1951, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts its first Rules of procedure.

Le 15 mai 1954, le chancelier allemand Konrad Adenauer, assis entre Walter Hallstein, Secrétaire d'État aux Affaires étrangères de la République fédérale d'Allemagne (à sa droite), et Léon Marshal, Secrétaire général du Conseil de l'Europe, préside une réunion du Comité des ministres du Conseil de l'Europe.

Suite à la réunion du Comité des ministres du 15 mai 1954, son président en exercice Konrad Adenauer en fait rapport à l'Assemblée consultative.

Les délégués agissent au nom des ministres des Affaires étrangères dans l'intervalle des sessions du Comité.

Rules of Procedure of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, adopted by the Committee of Ministers in August 1951 at its 9^th Session, and last amended in July 1964 at the 133^rd meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies.

On 20 November 1974, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe resolves to adopt a medium-term plan specifying the sectors and objectives of its activities.

On 18 February 1976, using its power to determine its internal organisation and, in particular, that of appointing advisory or technical committees, the Committee of Ministers adopts a Resolution concerning committee structures, terms of reference and working methods.

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe may set up committees of a consultative or technical nature.

On 21 November 1984, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts Resolution (84) 21 on the organisation’s activities in the political field with the aim of strengthening the continuity and effectiveness of exchanges of views on the political aspects of European cooperation, in particular at sessions of the Committee of Ministers, informal meetings of Ministers, meetings of the Ministers’ Deputies and meetings of Political Directors.

On 14 May 1993, in order to strengthen the Organisation's capacity for action, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts a Statutory Resolution reducing the number of cases where unanimity is required for its decisions.

View of the meeting room of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers, located in the Palais de l’Europe in Strasbourg, where the Foreign Ministers, or their delegates, of the organisation’s member States, hold their meetings.

Leni Fischer, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1996 to 1998, emphasises the progress achieved by the Assembly as regards monitoring the action taken on its resolutions and insists that this needs to be strengthened at Council of Ministers level.

Drawn up in 1998 by the Monitoring Unit under the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, this information document analyses the evolution of the Committee of Ministers’ procedure for monitoring compliance with commitments entered into by its member States.

Rules of Procedure of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, adopted by the Committee of Ministers in August 1951 at its 9th Session, and last amended in July 2005 at the 934rd meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies.

On 10 August 1949, the day of the first session of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, the French daily newspaper Le Figaro emphasises the symbolic value of the institution, whilst also highlighting its limited political influence.

On 10 August 1949, the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe meets for the first time in Strasbourg.

The first sitting of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe takes place on 10 August 1949. Among those taking part are Paul-Henri Spaak, Carlo Sforza, Edouard Herriot, Ernest Bevin and Robert Schuman.

The first session of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe is held under the provisional chairmanship of Édouard Herriot in the hall of Strasbourg University on 10 August 1949.

On 10 August 1949, after having chaired the inaugural sitting of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, Edouard Herriot, oldest member and Honorary President, hands over the chair to Paul-Henri Spaak following his election.

On 10 August 1949, at the first session of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, Paul-Henri Spaak is elected as the Assembly’s first President.

In the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, the members are seated by alphabetical order in order to avoid the formation of national groups. On 11 August 1949, in the hall of Strasbourg University Winston Churchill, the British member, sits between Frans van Cauwelaert and Mario Cingolani, the Belgian and the Italian members.

Rules of Procedure of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe, adopted on 17 August 1950.

The account of the reasons behind this Draft Recommendation, presented in 1950, indicates the weakness of the Consultative Assembly’s position with regard to the Committee of Ministers and the members’ demands to increase the influence of the institution. The role of defining and consolidating the Assembly’s consultative function is to take priority over the institution’s claim to power of decision.

In this interview, Paul Collowald, then a journalist on the daily newspaper Le Nouvel Alsacien, highlights the way in which the Members of the Assembly of the Council of Europe argued since the first sitting in August 1950 that they should assume a role in the political conscience of Europe, despite the fact that the Statute of the Council of Europe gives no significant power to the institution in which they sit.

On 6 July 1955, the ministerial bench pays close attention to the debates held during the seventh session of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe. From left to right: Harold Macmillan from the United Kingdom, Heinrich von Brentano from Germany, Paul-Henri Spaak from Belgium and Jan Willem Beyen from the Netherlands.

Memorandum from the Secretariat of the Assembly of the Council of Europe setting out the background to the proposal to change the name of the Consultative Assembly and the practical consequences of its decision to adopt the name ‘Parliamentary Assembly’.

Extracts from two speeches, juxtaposed by The Electronic Newsletter of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Council of Europe: the first is from a speech given by Edouard Herriot, Honorary President of the Assembly, during the first session of the Council held on 10 August 1949, and the second is from a speech given by Lord Russell Johnston, President of the Assembly, on 25 January 1999.

In an interview granted to the daily newspaper Luxemburger Wort shortly after taking up his post on 21 January 2002, the new President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Peter Schieder, calls for the widening of the powers of his institution and emphasises more generally the objectives of the Council of Europe in the areas of democratisation, legislative harmonisation and respect for human rights.

Rules of Procedure of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of the Assembly, on 4 November 1999 and last amended in 2001.

Rules of Procedure of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of the Assembly, on 4 November 1999 and last amended in 2011.

On 21 June 2005, the representatives of the Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace (AAPP), on a visit to Strasbourg, inform the Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) of the decision to transform the AAPP into an Asian Parliamentary Assembly based on the model of the PACE. The meeting is attended by Luzius Wildhaber, President of the European Court of Human Rights (second from the right).

List of the Presidents of the Council of Europe's Assembly since 1949.

Paul-Henri Spaak, first President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1949 to 1951.

François de Menthon, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1952 to 1954.

Guy Mollet, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1954 to 1956.

Fernand Dehousse, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1956 to 1959.

John Edwards, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1959 to 1960.

Per Federspiel, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1960 to 1963.

Pierre Pflimlin, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1963 to 1966.

Sir Geoffrey de Freitas, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1966 to 1969.

Olivier Reverdin, President of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1969 to 1972.

Giuseppe Vedovato, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1972 to 1975.

On 22 September 1976, in Strasbourg, Karl Czernetz (right), Austrian President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, welcomes the Socialist MP José Manuel de Medeiros Ferreira (left) at the ceremony held to mark Portugal’s accession to the Council of Europe.

Hans J. de Koster, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1978 to 1981.

José María de Areilza, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1981 to 1983.

Karl Ahrens, President of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly from 1983 to 1986.

Louis Jung, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1986 to 1989.

Anders Björck, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1989 to 1992.

Geoffrey Finsberg, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in 1992.

Miguel Ángel Martínez, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1992 to 1996.

Leni Fischer, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1996 to 1998.

David Russell-Johnston, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1999 to 2001. Photo taken at the ceremony held on 5 May 1999 in Strasbourg to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the organisation.

Peter Schieder, Austrian President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 21 January 2002 to 23 January 2005.

René van der Linden, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 24 January 2005 to 20 January 2008.

Lluís Maria de Puig, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe since 21 January 2008.

Jean-Claude Mignon, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe since January 2012.

Table showing the political groups of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in their historical context.

Table on the evolution of the General Committees of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

The debating chamber in the Maison de l’Europe in Strasbourg, seat of the Council of Europe’s Consultative Assembly from 1950 to 1977.

The debating chamber of the Maison de l’Europe in Strasbourg, seat of the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1950 to 1977.

The Debating Chamber of the Council of Europe in the Palais de l'Europe, Strasbourg, seat of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe.

The business of the Council of Europe’s Consultative Assembly is prepared in committee.

Organisation Chart of the General Secretariat of the Council of Europe in October 1954.

Organisation chart of the departments of the Council of Europe Secretariat, as detailed in the compendium of Secretariat mandates presented on 3 December 2003 by the Secretary General of the organisation.

Rules of Procedure dated 6 December 1956 concerning appointments to the posts of Secretary-General, Deputy Secretary-General and Clerk of the Assembly having the rank of Deputy Secretary-General, as amended on 20 March 1962.

In December 1957, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe requests the Secretary-General to prepare an annual report on European cooperation for the spring session of the Assembly.

List of the Secretaries General of the Council of Europe since 1949.

Léon Marchal, French Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 21 September 1953 to 24 September 1956.

Lodovico Benvenuti, Italian Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 15 September 1957 to 15 March 1964.

Peter Smithers, British Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 16 March 1964 to 15 September 1969.

Lujo Toncic-Sorinj, Austrian Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 16 September 1969 to 16 September 1974.

Georg Kahn-Ackermann, German Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 17 September 1974 to 17 September 1979.

Franz Karasek, Austrian Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 1 October 1979 to 1 October 1984.

Marcelino Oreja Aguirre, Spanish Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 1 October 1984 to 1 June 1989.

Catherine Lalumière, French Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 1 June 1989 to 31 May 1994.

Daniel Tarschys, Swedish Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 20 June 1994 to 1 September 1999.

Walter Schwimmer, Austrian Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 1 September 1999 to 31 August 2004.

Terry Davis, British Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 1 September 2004 to 31 August 2009.

Thorbjørn Jagland, Norwegian Secretary-General of the Council of Europe from 1 October 2009.

List of the Deputy Secretaries General of the Council of Europe since 1949.

Maud de Boer-Buquicchio (Netherlands), Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 2002 to 2012.

Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni (Italy), Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe since 1 September 2012.

Open for signature by the member States of the Council of Europe in Rome on 4 November 1950, the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms entered into force on 3 September 1953.

Interactive diagram on the control mechanism of the European Convention on Human Rights from 1954 to 1998.

En août 1954, à l’occasion de la première réunion de la Commission européenne des Droits de l’homme le 12 juillet 1954 à Strasbourg, le mensuel Nouvelles du Conseil de l’Europe publie, dans un supplément consacré à l’installation de la Commission, le message de Konrad Adenauer, président en exercice du Comité des ministres, le message de la commission permanente de l’Assemblée consultative, et le discours inaugural de Léon Marchal, Secrétaire général du Conseil de l’Europe.

Rules of procedure of the European Commission of Human Rights adopted on 15 December 1956.

Le droit de recours individuel, accordé aux personnes qui se prétendent victimes d’une violation de la Convention européenne des droits de l’homme par un État partie, est facultatif. Pour qu’il soit applicable il faut que l’État mis en cause ait déclaré reconnaître la compétence de la Commission européenne des droits de l’homme d’être saisie d’une requête individuelle. Voici, à titre illustratif, une déclaration du gouvernement de la Norvège du 4 décembre 1957 souscrivant pour une durée déterminée à la clause de l’article 25 de la Convention.

Rules of Court of the European Court of Human Rights adopted on 18 September 1959.

Protocol No. 2 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, conferring upon the European Court of Human Rights competence to give Advisory Opinions. Open for signature in Strasbourg on 6 May 1963 by the members of the Council of Europe that are signatories of the Convention, it entered into force on 21 September 1970.

Protocol No. 3 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, amending Articles 29, 30 and 34 of the Convention. Open for signature in Strasbourg on 6 May 1963 by the members of the Council of Europe that are signatories of the Convention, it entered into force on 21 September 1970.

Protocol No. 5 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, amending Articles 22 and 40 of the Convention. Open for signature in Strasbourg on 20 January 1966 by the members of the Council of Europe that are signatories of the Convention, it entered into force on 20 December 1971.

Open for signature in Vienna on 19 March 1985 by the members of the Council of Europe that are signatories of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the Protocol No. 8 to the Convention entered into force on 1 January 1990.

Hearing of the European Court of Human Rights in 1966 under the Presidency of the French Judge, René Samuel Cassin.

The European Commission of Human Rights in 1996 under the Presidency of the Swedish Judge, Sture Petrén.

List of the Presidents of the European Commission of Human Rights from 1954 to 1999 and of the Presidents of the European Court of Human Rights from 1959 to 1998.

Protocol No 11 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms replacing the existing European Commission and Court of Human Rights with a permanent Court. The Protocol is opened for signature by the member States of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg on 11 May 1994 and enters into force on 1 November 1998.

Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 4 November 1950, as last amended by Protocol No 11 of 11 May 1994, which enters into force on 1 November 1998.

Interactive diagram on the control mechanism of the European Convention on Human Rights from 1998 to 2009. Since it was adopted, the control mechanism for the rights in the Convention has been amended several times. It was thoroughly reformed by Protocol No 11, which was adopted in 1994 and came into force on 1 November 1998; then by Protocol No 14, which was adopted in 2004 and came into force on 1 June 2010. However, since Protocol No 14 did not come into force early enough, the states parties to the Convention agreed to adopt a Protocol No 14 bis, which contained just some of the procedural measures in Protocol No 14, as an interim and provisional measure. Protocol No 14 bis, adopted in May 2009, came into force on 1 October 2009 and ceased to be in force or applied on a provisional basis as from 1 June 2010.

Article published on 3 November 1998 in the French daily newspaper Le Figaro as the new European Court of Human Rights is inaugurated in Strasbourg.

General view of the Grand Chamber during the inauguration ceremony of the new European Court of Human Rights held in Strasbourg on 3 November 1998.

Photo of the judges at the inauguration ceremony of the new European Court of Human Rights held in Strasbourg on 3 November 1998.

Courtroom of the European Court of Human Rights in the Human Rights Building, Strasbourg.

List of the members of the European Court of Human Rights (as of 3 February 2003).

List of the members of the European Court of Human Rights (as of 21 January 2005).

List of the members of the European Court of Human Rights (as of 20 September 2010).

Contribution by Luzius Wildhaber, first President of the European Court of Human Rights after its 1998 reform, published to mark the 50th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights. In his article, Mr Wildhaber identifies the challenges facing the system of protection of human rights set up by the Convention as it enters the new century.

Présentation du système de protection juridictionnel établi par la Convention européenne des droits de l’homme: le rôle de la Cour de Strasbourg, son siège, sa composition, son fonctionnement, l’étendue de la protection, les conditions de recevabilité des requêtes, les effets des arrêts et le contrôle de leur exécution. En particulier, la vidéo montre des exemples concrets de griefs soumis à la Cour ainsi que l’influence de sa jurisprudence dans les différents États ayant ratifié la Convention.

During the annual press conference held on 27 January 2004, Luzius Wildhaber, President of the European Court of Human Rights, highlights the difficulties that the Court, a victim of its own success, is encountering as it faces a growing workload, and indicates the need to complete the reform of the control mechanismof the European Convention on Human Rights.

Protocol No 14 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, amending the control system of the Convention. The Protocol is opened for signature by the member States of the Council of Europe signatories to the Convention in Strasbourg on 13 May 2004 and has entered into force on 1 June 2010.

Le 13 mai 2004, le quotidien belge Le Soir commente la réforme de la Cour européenne des droits l’homme, adoptée la veille à Strasbourg, portant notamment sur le durcissement des critères de recevabilité des recours individuels.

In an address given on 16 May 2005 at the Third Council of Europe Summit in Warsaw, Luzius Wildhaber, President of the European Court of Human Rights, reviews the role played by the Court in Strasbourg since it was established and calls on the Heads of State or Government to develop a strategy to ensure its continued effectiveness in the long term.

This diagram shows the stages of the procedure at the European Court of Human Rights, from the lodging of an application to the implementation of the judgment.

On 12 May 2009, pending the entry into force of Protocol No 14 amending the control system of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted Protocol No 14 bis to the Convention at its ministerial session in Madrid. The aim of Protocol No 14 bis was to increase the Court’s case-processing capacity as rapidly as possible. It was opened for signature on 27 May 2009 in Strasbourg and came into force on 1 October 2009. It ceased to be in force or applied on a provisional basis as from 1 June 2010, the date on which Protocol No 14 to the Convention came into force.

These flow chart indicates the progress of a case by judicial formation.

These flow chart indicates the progress of a case through the different judicial formations.

Rules of the European Court of Human Rights entered into force on 1 September 2012.

The Judges of the European Court of Human Rights

Luzius Wildhaber (Switzerland), elected as the first President of the new single European Court of Human Rights on 24 July 1998. President of the European Court of Human Rights from 1 November 1998 to 18 January 2007.

Jean-Paul Costa (France), President of the European Court of Human Rights from 19 January 2007 to 31 octobre 2012.

Nicolas Bratza (United Kingdom), President of the European Court of Human Rights from 4 November 2011 to 31 October 2012.

Dean Spielmann (Luxembourg), President of the European Court of Human Rights since 1 November 2012.

Resolution creating the post of Commissioner for Human Rights, adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 7 May 1999.

On 26 January 2004, Álvaro Gil-Robles, Commissioner for Human Rights, delivers an address when presenting his third Annual Report to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in which he outlines the institutional developments that have occurred during his term of office, as well as his main areas of activity during his four-year tenure.

In an interview for the Spanish daily newspaper El País, published on 19 October 2005, Álvaro Gil-Robles, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, gives an account of the changes made in Europe to human rights policies during his term of office from 1999 to 2005.

Álvaro Gil-Robles, first Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights from 15 October 1999 to 31 March 2006.

Thomas Hammarberg, Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights from April 2006 to March 2012.

Nils Muižnieks, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe since 1 April 2012.

On 13 September 1961, in Resolution (61) 20, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe establishes the European Conferenece of Local Authorities pursuant to Article 17 of the organisation’s Statute and adopts the Conference’s Charter.

On 19 February 1975, in Resolution (75) 4, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe decides to amend the Charter of the European Conference of Local Authorities, which is renamed the Council of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe.

Statutory Resolution of 14 January 1994 adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, which creates the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

Charter of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) adopted on 14 January 1994.

Summary report of debates of the first session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe, held in Strasbourg from 31 May to 3 June 1994.

On 30 May 1995, Claude Haegi, President of the Chamber of Regions of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE), delivers the opening address at the Chamber’s second session.

On 15 March 2000, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts a revised Statutory Resolution relating to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

On 15 March 2000, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts, as an annexe to Statutory Resolution (2000) 1, a revised Charter of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

Rules of procedure of the Chamber of Local Authorities of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE), adopted by the Chamber in 2000.

Rules of procedure of the Chamber of Regions of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE), adopted by the Chamber in 2000.

Rules of procedure of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE), adopted by the Congress in 2000.

On 2 May 2007, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts a revised Statutory Resolution relating to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

Rules of procedure of the Congress and its Chambers, adopted by the Congress on 29 May 2008.

On 19 January 2011, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopts a revised Statutory Resolution relating to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

Rules of procedure of the Congress and its Chambers, adopted by the Congress on 20 March 2012.

List of the Presidents of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe since 1957.

Jacques Chaban-Delmas (France), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 12 January 1957 to 24 January 1960.

Georges Dardel (France), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 25 January 1960 to 20 March 1962.

Henry Cravatte (Luxembourg), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 21 March 1962 to 6 June 1964.

Sir Francis Hill (United Kingdom), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 7 June 1964 to 27 October 1968.

Alois Lugger (Austria), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 28 October 1968 to 25 October 1970.

Kjell T. Evers (Norway), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 26 October 1970 to 24 September 1972.

Giancarlo Piombino (Italy), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities from 25 September 1972 to 15 September 1974.

R. Laan (Netherlands), President of the European Conference of Local Authorities, renamed Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe during his term of office, from 16 September 1974 to 25 April 1976.

Henry Cravatte (Luxembourg), President of the Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 26 April 1976 to 19 June 1978.

Gordon Pirie (United Kingdom), President of the Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 20 June 1978 to 9 June 1980.

Bernard Dupont (Switzerland), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 10 June 1980 to 18 October 1982.

Eric Kiesl (Netherlands), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 19 October 1982 to 15 October 1984.

John Winther (Denmark), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 16 October 1984 to 14 October 1985.

Antoni Siurana (Spain), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 15 October 1985 to 19 October 1987.

John Morgan (United Kingdom), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 20 October 1987 to 18 March 1991.

Lucien Sergent (France), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 19 March 1991 to 16 March 1992.

Bengt Mollstedt (Sweden), President of the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 17 March 1992 to 30 May 1994, the year in which the institution became the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE).

Alexander Tchernoff (Netherlands), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) from 31 May 1994 to 2 July 1996.

Claude Haegi (Switzerland), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) from 2 July 1996 to 25 May 1998.

Alain Chenard (France), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) from 26 May 1998 to 22 May 2000.

Llibert Cuatrecasas (Spain), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) from 23 May 2000 to 1 June 2002.

Giovanni di Stasi (Italy), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) from 25 May 2004 to 30 May 2006.

Halvdan Skard (Norway), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe from 30 May 2006 to 27 May 2008.

Yavuz Mildon (Turkey), President of the Chamber of Regions of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (CLRAE) from 2004 to 2008 and President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe from 27 May 2008 to 26 October 2010.

Ian Micallef (Malta), President of the Chamber of Local Authorities of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (CLRAE) from June 2006 to October 2010 and President ad interim of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe from January 2009 to October 2010.

Keith Whitmore (United Kingdom), President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (CLRAE) from 26 October 2010 to 16 October 2012.