Permanent Atlas of the European Union: Third edition

By Collective and Jean-Dominique Giuliani

The European Union, with its 27 Member States and 447 million inhabitants, is one of the world's major economic and commercial powers. But many people still know little about it. The third edition of this book, unique in its form, reflects the latest political and economic changes and provides a comprehensive and easily accessible overview of the European Union, the Eurozone and each of its 27 Member States and their overseas territories; it summarises the main points of their history and political and economic realities and includes over 50 physical and geopolitical maps of Europe. Innovative, it is permanent, meaning that its content is regularly updated online, on a website that is accessible free of charge so that everyone has the most reliable information on a constantly developing Europe. The Permanent Atlas of the European Union is written by the experts of the Robert Schuman Foundation and edited by Jean-Dominique GIULIANI and Pascale JOANNIN, President and General Manager of the Foundation.

Pascale Joannin is Managing Director of the Fondation Robert Schuman. Jean-Dominique Giuliani is President of the Fondation Robert Schuman

• Language: English
• Publisher: Marie B
• Release date: Apr 30, 2021
• ISBN: 9782492763007

Book preview

Couverture : PERMANENT ATLAS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Marie B - IllustrésPage de titre : PERMANENT ATLAS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Marie B - Illustrés

Copyright Éditions Marie B/

Collection Lignes de Repères 2021

ISBN: 9782492763007

Ce document numérique a été réalisé par Nord Compo.

Table des matières

Page de titre

Page de copyright

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I. THE EUROPEAN UNION

1. Presentation, the European Union

Map of the European Union

Physical and Human Geographical map of the EU

Places and Clusters of European Memory

2. Demographic and Economic Information Sheet

Population of the EU Member States

Internal Migration

EU and Migration Management

Asylum Requests

Member States GDP, Distribution of world GDP

Public Debt

Recovery Plan

Multiannual Financial Framework

Comparative factors EU-World

Trade Agreements

Europe in World Trade

3. Political and Institutional Information

Institutions

The 11 European Treaties

Political Europe in 2021

1957-2021, European integration

Territories of Europe

The EU and NATO Member States

The institutional functioning of the EU

Referendums on European Issues

Historic points of reference

Personalities, founding fathers

Capitals

II. THE EURO

1. Euro Area – Presentation Sheet

2. Information sheet in figures

Geography of the Euro Area

3. Institutions and Mechanisms

Historic Points of Reference

III. MEMBERS STATES OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

AUSTRIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

BELGIUM

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

BULGARIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

CROATIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

CYPRUS

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

CZECH REPUBLIC

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

DENMARK

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

ESTONIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

FINLAND

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

FRANCE

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

GERMANY

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

GREECE

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

HUNGARY

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

IRELAND

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

ITALY

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

LATVIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

LITHUANIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

LUXEMBOURG

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Country file

Capital

MALTA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Country file

Capital

THE NETHERLANDS

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

POLAND

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

PORTUGAL

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

ROMANIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

SLOVAKIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

SLOVENIA

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

SPAIN

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

SWEDEN

Presentation

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

Political map

Capital

Country file

OVERSEAS

Presentation

Political map

Country file

Historic points of reference

Remarkable personalities

ANNEXES

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Robert Schuman Foundation is a research centre on European policy and one of the leading think-tanks devoted to the European Union. It undertakes and publishes many studies which contribute to a better understanding of the Union’s mechanisms, institutions and policies. It makes suggestions for new guidelines and actions. Its publications, amongst which feature a weekly e-letter, its collection of Notes, European Issues and its annual Report on the State of the Union, look into all areas of European work and are, in virtue of this, often extremely specialised.

Under the management of its Chairman and General Director, and thanks to its regular work, the Foundation’s team contributes to the gathering of information contained in the present Atlas. This collective book hopes to address the widest public as possible.

Thanks has to go to the entire Foundation team for its contribution, notably Cécile ANTONINI, Ramona BLOJ, Stefanie BUZMANIUK, Catherine d’ANGELO, Helen LEVY, Eric MAURICE, François MERCERON, Pascal ORCIER.

Regarding the Robert Schuman Foundation’s work we refer to its website: www.robert-schuman.eu, and its accounts on all of the social media.

The Foundation offers thanks to the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs for having provided, in view of this publication, the maps designed by its geographical department (Direction des Archives) whose quality is recognised by all. (www.diplomatie.gouv.fr).

THE EUROPEAN UNION

THE EUROPEAN UNION FOR ALL

THE European Union is present in the life of each and every European citizen. However its complexity, the diversity of its Member States and its detachment make it difficult to understand. Misconceptions feed opinions that are far from reality.

This is why the Robert Schuman Foundation hopes to offer the public this collective work, whose statistical data can be updated in real time on an open, free website. This atlas aims to bridge a gap.

It offers its readers geographical maps of the very best quality that have been created with the support of the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

The dangers of history

But this atlas also takes some unusual risks.

Europe’s geography cannot be dissociated from its history. It is vivid and too rich for the geopolitical, economic and social problems of each of the Member States to be dealt with separately. And so we have tried to present a brief history of the European countries which are members of the Union, together with their statistics. Hence, we are perfectly aware of being over simplistic. The history of each of the Member States has been the subject of many detailed works and it deserves to be read in many more publications yet. We therefore ask the diplomats, experts and also the citizens of these countries to excuse our pretention in summarising history in just a few lines, which although accurate is but too brief. Please believe that we have taken this risk for the good cause, to encourage curiosity, to convince the reader that he or she should explore further, to improve his or her knowledge of our European partners.

Diversity and Unity

The history of the countries of Europe is incredibly rich. This continent is one of culture and inventions, the foremost of these being democracy.

During each period of history we find a Golden Age whether this be Athenian, Roman, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Polish, British, German, French etc. During each age we discover artists, poets, philosophers, scientists, political leaders, industrialists who have all changed the course of humanity’s history with their work, their inventions and their contributions to human thought. For each of these European countries, we recall their names in this book. The list is incomplete of course, but those who do feature here correspond to all of these criteria. And readers should not be surprised if the dictators have not been mentioned, since in our opinion they are not remarkable personalities!

European diversity is only equalled by its unique contribution to mankind and it is probably this which sets it apart from the rest. The construction of the States has also been that of the nations and within this framework democracy was created, i.e. the rule of law, the process of creating political legitimacy based on the election, the majority rule, the control and balance of power. The modern difficulties encountered in terms of European integration, notably speaking as one, can also be explained by the citizens’ attachment to their history. But necessity, the emergence of Continent-States, the opening of borders and the global aspect of international affairs, have also had their impact. European integration has progressively shown itself for what it is, a choice of reason particularly adapted to the requirements of the States of Europe. It is a unique example in the history of Man; it is one of a voluntary grouping of sovereign States which pool their strengths, i.e. certain aspects of their sovereignty to rise to the challenges they face. The presentation of the European Union will help readers understand what it has become: a true economic power, the voluntary grouping of people who have a great deal in common and of States which have decided to cooperate together before all others. The page specifically devoted to the euro area is a choice that has been dictated by the present context. Europeans now nearly all share the same currency, which apart from its international influence stands as a unifying factor, since it consolidates the common interests of the European populations in terms of economic competition and brings the most determined of these together as they step up European cooperation. However, European unification cannot just be reduced to the economy and finance. From the dream born after a deadly conflict, the European Union has become a tangible reality, with its institutions, its laws and procedures. In the 20th century it provided peace, stability and prosperity to a continent forged by war, treaties, glory and catastrophes. In the 21st century it offers the people of Europe an answer to a particularly fast moving period of globalisation, which is full of challenges. Hesitation, even in the most crises, has not shaken beliefs that are underpinned by undeniable acquisitions. Only the UK, which was never at ease within Europe, is an exception, and has now left.

For all of the others, the European Union is an alliance of States that is trying to protect and promote their model of society in a rapidly changing world. This Atlas simply aims to explain the diversity of our nations and peoples, whose multitude of common qualities emerge from this. United in Diversity, such is the Union’s official motto that we would like to illustrate here.

Jean-Dominique GIULIANI January 2021

FOR centuries voices spoke out in support of the unity of Europe. The continent’s history has indeed been marked by too many conflicts and treaties. It is a warring, murderous and brutal history. However, as early as the Middle Ages, a mixture of elites emerged, firstly in the universities and then in the Renaissance between artists and scientists. Europe learned from Erasmus that mobility is the vital condition for creation. It gradually built up a shared, although not common culture thanks to its incredible inventiveness. But the slow integration of the States led to a period of nationalities, the mother of nationalism. It led to a strengthening of the borders, impediments to the free movement of men and merchandise, and war, again.

The two world wars marked an escalation in destruction and sacrifice of human lives. The conflict of 1914-18 was one in which industrial war emerged, the Second was that of total war, i.e. when the civilian population is attacked first. There were more than 10 million deaths at the beginning of the 20th century and more than 60 million between 1939 and 1945!

Why Europe?

With this we understand that the address made by Victor Hugo at the Congress for Peace in 1848, the projects drafted by Aristide Briand in 1929, who wanted to federate Europe, the unrelenting work by Richard de Coudenhove-Kalergi, founder of the Paneuropean Movement, the Manifesto for a free and united Europe (the Ventotene Manifesto) drafted by Altiero Spinelli in 1941, the speech delivered by Sir Winston Churchill in 1946 and The Hague Congress in 1948 (Congress of Europe) for a united Europe found a real echo amongst the ruins of the Second World War.

On 9th May 1950, based on the idea of Jean Monnet, Robert Schuman, the then French Foreign Affairs Minister made a surprise offer to Germany and those European States who wanted to, to pool their coal and steel, their strategic resources; those which were to enable reconstruction and the revival of the countries ravaged by war and exhausted economies and over which governments were still disputing production quotas and war damages. America, which had then become the leading world power, launched the Marshall Plan which provided Europe with the equivalent of 100 billion $ at current exchange rates to help it recover. All seemed to have learned from 1918, 1919 and 1920. The Versailles Treaty, and those which followed had caused humiliation, resentment, an economic crisis, as well as social disorder, which were to be the true causes of the Second World War.

This true break with Europe’s past, which at the time demanded a great deal of courage, was immediately supported by the populations, who wanted peace.

The Great European Odyssey

The Treaty of Paris establishing the European Community of Steel and Coal (ECSC) entered into force on 23rd July 1952. It linked six States (Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands), who were the founders of the Community. It is was the first legal act that organised European cooperation in a new way, the community method, which granted an independent High Authority the power to ensure the respect of the content of the commitments made voluntarily by the signatories. It was followed by 10 other treaties.

Europe’s great odyssey was then embarked upon and it has constantly grown and strengthened both economies and policies across the continent.

The rejection of the European Community of Defence in 1954 by France, which had originally launched it, did not stop the process and so the Treaties of Rome, which created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Community of Atomic Energy (EURATOM) entered into force on January 1st 1958. The Customs Union of the six founder States was proclaimed and completed 10 years later. The ensuing economic successes were the source of enthusiasm on the part of the governments of Europe and then there was open mention of the goal to create the United States of Europe sometime in the future, which would have real federal power resulting from the common institutions. The Costa/ENEL decision of the Court of Justice on 15th July 1964 confirmed the principle of the superiority of European law over national law.

General de Gaulle’s France, which wanted to recover its position as a major power, lost in the defeat of 1949, opposed this. This was then to be known as the empty chair crisis (1st July 1965) which the European Community ended with the Luxembourg Compromise (21st January 1966). Europe was not to be federal and remained a Union of sovereign States, the unanimity of which was required for vital decisions. This state of affairs continues today.

However the mechanism for the pooling of real interests triggered by the Schuman Declaration continued to function. The progressive unification of Europe continued within a legal framework. The institutions developed and the number of common policies continued to grow. The European Council was created in 1974 for the regular assembly of the heads of State and government. The European Parliament was elected by direct universal suffrage for the first time in June 1979. The foundations for a European monetary system were established in 1979, prior to the euro, the single currency, in circulation since 1st January 2002. The Single European Act (1st July 1987), then the Treaty on European Union (Maastricht, 1st November 1993), the Amsterdam (1st May 1999), Nice (1st February 2003) Lisbon (1st December 2009) Treaties, have led to the formation of a grand single European market, progressing towards Economic and Monetary Union, setting the base for a Common Foreign and Security Policy and also the enlargement of the Union.

Five Enlargements

In addition to its deepening the European Community has continued to grow. In over 50 years (1957-2013), it has multiplied the number of Member States fourfold, rising from 6 to 28 members, its population has tripled, rising from 181 to 508 million and its surface area has grown to reach 4.2 million km². Its geography has been transformed in proportion to the strategic changes that have occurred on its borders. It then had to assume the impact of the fall of the Berlin Wall on 9th November 1989) and the collapse of the Soviet Union (21st December 1991). No State was able to resist the attraction of the European Union. All have progressively joined it in five periods of enlargement, which involved the UK, Ireland and Denmark (1973), Greece (1981), Spain and Portugal (1986) then Austria, Sweden and Finland (1995). Norway and Switzerland are not members but are linked to the EU via close agreements. The total reunification of the continent only came in 2004 and 2007 with the accession of the States of Central and Eastern Europe, formerly under Soviet domination (Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia in 2004, Bulgaria and Romania in 2007 and Croatia in 2013) and the two Mediterranean islands of Malta and Cyprus (2004). The European Union a small cape on the Asian continent (Paul Valéry), has gradually acquired the dimension of a continent, as required by the 21st century, its main asset in the face of the world pivot toward Asia and its spectacular development. Transatlantic relations, notably from the financial and trade points of view still form the heart of the world economy and are still an unequalled pole of creativity. Europe can be proud of being a successful part of this.

Having helped bring down communism with its economic successes and its strong alliance within NATO, the European Union contributed to bringing democracy back to Greece and to the Iberian Peninsula. Its soft power, power by example, belief and economic support has achieved miracles since it has pacified an entire continent from within, the security of which has only really been guaranteed by the US until now. It also helped bring prosperity back to Europe. With its Member States it is now the biggest provider of humanitarian aid and development aid in the world.

From a strategic point of view history will note that this achievement seemed impossible just after the Second World War. Europe and its Member States have no declared enemies, have no serious dispute with any power and are linked by legal commitments that are not really likely to be criticised or infringed; they offer an envied model of a social market economy.

New Challenges

However the beginning of the 21st century gave Europe a violent wake-up call with the financial crisis starting in 2007, which coincided with a deep change in the economic balance of power in the international arena. This is the multifaceted challenge to which it now has to rise.

The demography of Europe is also cause for concern. The European Union’s population is declining and the average age of its citizens is constantly rising. It has become the primary destination for immigration and asylum requests.

Its diversity, both from the point of view of the competitiveness of its economic players, as well as its State structures, is real and its Member States have extremely different levels of development. It is still the leading trading power in the world, but for how much longer? The deepening of European unification seems to be answer to the reduction in influence of Western countries in the international arena.

Constantly integrating

Finally, in a state of constant and still incomplete integration, Europe has not always managed to speak with one voice to influence the international arena as it should. A true Common Foreign and Security Policy is slowly emerging because it affects extremely specific areas of sovereignty.

Given its past achievements the European Union should be more confident of its ability to face the future. Standards of life in Europe are exceptional in comparison with other continents, solidarity is organised like nowhere else on earth, inequalities between States, regions, between categories of the population are compensated for according to a model that no one else in the world can match, its rule of law, rules and regulation procedures are unrivalled.

If it is to assert these values the EU will probably have to change the way it is organised. It has to continue pooling the strengths of its Member States and assert itself in the world on a par with the unequalled contribution it has made to human civilisation, surpassing itself with new founding acts that rise to the challenges of the 21st century

IllustrationIllustrationIllustration

The European Union has 27 Member States

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.

Geography

– Surface area: 3,989,180 km²

(Source: European Commission)

– Coastline: 67,571 km (EU) ; 42,672 km (Schengen Area)

(Sources: Frontex)

Population

Population 447.6 million inhabitants (2020)

Gross natural variation rate: – 1.1 per 1000 (2019)

Migratory balance: 3.1 per 1000 (2019)

Total demographic growth: 2 per 1000 (2019)

Gross birth rate: 9.4 per 1000 (2019)

Gross death rate: 10.4 per 1000 (2019)

Life expectancy at birth: women 83.6 years, men 78.3 years (2019)

Immigration

Non-European citizens : 21.8 million (2019)

Citizens of one Member State living in another Member