Project description
Understanding the meaning of 'An ever closer union among the peoples of Europe'
As mentioned in its opening line, the EU Treaty aims to establish 'an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe'. The EU-funded EPoCH project aims to elucidate this sentence by analysing who is included and who is excluded from the 'peoples of Europe'. Within this scope, the project will examine the archives of the Intergovernmental Conferences (IGCs) of the Rome Treaty (1956–1957) and the Maastricht Treaty (1990–1991). These analyses will help us determine whether colonialism influenced the definition of 'peoples of Europe' in 1956–1957 and which individual economic activity was a precondition for the right to EU citizenship in 1991–1992.
Objective
This project aims to provide the first critical legal historical analysis of the iconic opening line of the EU treaties; ‘an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe’. This project will therefore advance the scientific understanding of the origins and meaning of the most well-known phrase of EU law, meant to define European integration. EPoCH is designed to offer a novel account of who was meant to be included and excluded from the ‘ever closer union among the peoples of Europe’, when the phrase was drafted and re-drafted. This is a singularly novel approach, which will advance the state of the art of research on the foundations of EU law, as well as the history of European integration. Evaluating the project of European integration from the point of view of the historical legal standing of the individual within the project itself is important in today’s context of renewed interest in political nationalism and critique of the EU. EPoCH conducts the first ever systematic analysis of the archival material of the Intergovernmental Conferences (IGCs) of the Rome Treaty 1956-57, and of the Maastricht Treaty 1990-91. EPoCH’s specific objectives are, first, to acquire knowledge about the ways in which the choice of ‘peoples of Europe’ was affected by the on-going, yet unravelling, colonialism of the EEC Member States during the drafting of the Rome Treaty in 1956-57. Second, to acquire knowledge about the ways in which individual economic activity was a precondition for the right to EU citizenship, during the drafting of the Maastricht Treaty in 1991-92. This means understanding more about the meaning of the concept of ‘peoples of Europe’ when connected to that of ‘EU citizenship’. Third, to analyse the relation between the micro-histories of the drafting of the Rome and Maastricht treaties concerning who was included and excluded from the ‘ever closer union’, and how that affects the current heightened tension between European integration and the nation state.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1165 KOBENHAVN
Denmark
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.