‘Sit Europa in the saddle — she’ll know how to ride!’ On 13 May 1950, German cartoonist Fritz Meinhard highlights the historic nature of the Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950 in bringing reconciliation to France and Germany and laying the foundations of a united Europe. Taking inspiration from the Greek myth of the abduction of the princess Europa by Zeus in the guise of a bull, Meinhard emphasises the combined efforts of French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman (on the right) and Federal Chancellor Konrad Adenauer (on the left) to help Europa climb onto the bull, whose markings form a map of the European continent. The cartoonist also makes reference to the famous metaphor used on 11 March 1867 by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, the main architect of the future North German Confederation, which would be subjected to Prussian hegemony: Setzen wir Deutschland in den Sattel, reiten wird es schon können.