Political History of the EU

Teacher(s)

Defacqz Samuel;

Language

English

Main themes

This course aims at tracing the history of European political integration, from the end of the 2nd World War to the present day, through several strands of analysis:

• The European context : political and policy dynamics specific to Member States, their leaders and civil societies;
• Global geopolitics: relations with other great powers (USA, Soviet Union/Russia), international organisations (UN,…), emerging powers (China,…) and developing countries.   

It contextualises the origins and the evolutions of the functioning of the main EU institutions and the main EU policies, while looking at Member States’ capabilities and strategic interests regarding peace and stability, growth, cohesion, rule of law, power and security. Zooming out, the course also addresses the impact of the shifts in the global world order and emerging security threats on the EU’s integration process.  
The course sheds light on the peculiarity of the EU political integration and its inherent tensions, such as between unity and diversity, supranationalism and intergovernmentalism, deepening and widening processes, soft and hard power, values and interests.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

Describe the evolution of the EU’s political integration, from its inception to today Analyze the needs and constraints underlying the creation and the functioning of the main EU institutions and policies, through European and global dynamics Critically assess the political issues and challenges the EU is facing today, as regards its institutional functioning and the means of expressing its political power

Teaching methods

This course adopts a historical perspective to examine the political dimension of European integration. The pedagogical approach combines lectures, discussions, and research projects grounded in archival materials related to the political history of the European Union. To make the most of in-class sessions, students are encouraged to critically engage with the readings and contribute thoughtfully to peer discussions. They are also expected to collaborate actively during the research projects.

Evaluation methods

The examination for this course comprises the execution and presentation of a graded research project (40% of the overall grade), feedback on a peers’ research project (5% of the overall grade), and a final exam (55% of the overall grade). As for the research project and peer feedback, guidelines for each deliverable, along with the schedule and evaluation criteria, will be presented at the beginning of the fall session. The grades for the research project and peer feedback will carry over to the August session (resit).
The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems is not encouraged in this course. However, if AI systems are used during assessments, students are required to submit a print-screen or transcription of the exchange had with the chosen AI system(s), together with a paragraph explaining the reasons for resorting to AI and the advantages and disadvantages found in the use of this method.

Online resources

Readings and other learning materials will be made available on the course’s Moodle page at least one week before each class. When required (as indicated on Moodle), students are expected to review these materials in advance to prepare for lectures and discussions. Lecture slideshows will be uploaded progressively throughout the fall session.

Faculty or entity

> IEEB