Comparative Roles in the European Union: France, Germany, and the United Kingdom

The European Union (EU) from past to present has changed because of the roles of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. This thesis will explain how each country has shaped the EU. First, to understand each role, it is critical to obtain knowledge on the evolution of the EU. The concept of a unified Europe is not new from the ideas of the Greeks\u27 Europa to the concept of Winston Churchill\u27s United States of Europe. However, it took the destruction and the chaos of World War II for the six original founders, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Germany, to set up a plan for a European union. For half a century, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom has had a vital influence in the EU. Each country has had a different influence that shaped the EU. As one of the six founders, France has been a major player in the construction of the European Union. France has supplied its best political leaders, such as Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman, to help the EU in its initial process. Germany\u27s influence in the EU is linked to the Economic and Monetary Union, which was based on the German bank and its currency. Also, Germany was seen as a key player because of its large size, which France saw as interference to its possible supremacy in the EU. The United Kingdom has always been a silent partner in the EU. It offers excuses why it does not want to completely join the EU, but it will be willing to give its own perspective on how the EU should operate. The last of the four chapters contain central questions that are given to explain the roles each country had in the European Union