The Quiet End of the Front-Runner: The Expiry of the European Coal and Steel Community

Abstract

The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was the first and most notable post-war supranational community advancing the process of European integration. It is also the only such community which ceased to exist after 50 years, as laid down in its founding treaty. Based on archival research, this article reviews the discussion on the future of the ECSC Treaty within the European institutions held at the beginning of the 1990s, which confirmed the expiry date of 2002. It challenges the view, expressed even within European institutions, that the Treaty expired because of outdated legal provisions, as these were in fact still used and applied in the 1980s, especially during the European steel crisis. However, this discussion produced no compelling reason why the European coal and steel industries should not be integrated into the general EU common market after 2002, also in view of the upcoming enlargement to Central and Eastern Europe. In fact, even after its disappearance, the ECSC's financial legacy continued to contribute to EU policy objectives.