In European Union – How Comes?, Prof. Dr. Hartmut Marhold explores the question of how Europe managed to find a path to unity despite the most adverse historical conditions.
After the Second World War, the return of sovereign nation states seemed just as likely as the lasting dominance of the new superpowers, the USA and the Soviet Union. The European Union was by no means a historical necessity, but rather the result of political decisions, conflicts, and compromises. Its development was not linear, but marked by setbacks, crises, and new beginnings.
It is precisely these breaks and turning points that enable a deeper understanding of what the European Union is today—and why it has become what it is.