European Economic Community

European Economic Community/European Community
  • Danish:Europæiske Økonomiske Fællesskab
    Dutch:Europese Economische Gemeenschap
    French:Communauté économique européenne
    German:Europäische Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft
    Greek:Ευρωπαϊκή Οικονομική Κοινότητα
    Italian:Comunità Economica Europea
    Portuguese:Comunidade Económica Europeia
    Spanish:Comunidad Económica Europea
1958–1993
Flag of EEC/EC
Anthem: "Ode to Joy" (orchestral)
EEC in 1993
EEC in 1993
StatusEconomic union
Institutional seats
Largest cityLondon
Official languages
Commission President 
• 1958–1967
Walter Hallstein
• 1967–1970
Jean Rey
• 1970–1972
Franco Maria Malfatti
• 1972–1973
Sicco Mansholt
• 1973–1977
François-Xavier Ortoli
• 1977–1981
Roy Jenkins
• 1981–1985
Gaston Thorn
• 1985–1993
Jacques Delors
Legislature
Historical eraCold War
25 March 1957
1 January 1958
1 July 1967
1 January 1993
1 November 1993
1 December 2009
Currency
Succeeded by
European Union
Today part ofEuropean Union
United Kingdom
¹ The information in this infobox covers the EEC's time as an independent organisation. It does not give details of post-1993 operation within the EU as that is explained in greater length in the European Union and European Communities articles.
² De facto only, these cities hosted the main institutions but were not titled as capitals.

The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,[note 1] aiming to foster economic integration among its member states. It was subsequently renamed the European Community (EC) upon becoming integrated into the first pillar of the newly formed European Union (EU) in 1993. In the popular language, the singular European Community was sometimes inaccurately used in the wider sense of the plural European Communities, in spite of the latter designation covering all the three constituent entities of the first pillar.[2] The EEC was also known as the European Common Market (ECM) in the English-speaking countries,[3] and sometimes referred to as the European Community even before it was officially renamed as such in 1993. In 2009, the EC formally ceased to exist and its institutions were directly absorbed by the EU. This made the Union the formal successor institution of the Community.

The Community's initial aim was to bring about economic integration, including a common market and customs union, among its six founding members: Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany. It gained a common set of institutions along with the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM) as one of the European Communities under the 1965 Merger Treaty (Treaty of Brussels). In 1993 a complete single market was achieved, known as the internal market, which allowed for the free movement of goods, capital, services, and people within the EEC. In 1994 the internal market was formalised by the EEA agreement. This agreement also extended the internal market to include most of the member states of the European Free Trade Association, forming the European Economic Area, which encompasses 15 countries.

Upon the entry into force of the Maastricht Treaty in 1993, the EEC was renamed the European Community to reflect that it covered a wider range than economic policy.[4] This was also when the three European Communities, including the EC, were collectively made to constitute the first of the three pillars of the European Union, which the treaty also founded. The EC existed in this form until it was abolished by the 2009 Treaty of Lisbon, which incorporated the EC's institutions into the EU's wider framework and provided that the EU would "replace and succeed the European Community".[5]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference emblem was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^
    • "European Community". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 30 January 2009. The term also commonly refers to the 'European Communities', which comprise ...
    • "Introduction to EU Publications". Guide to European Union Publications at the EDC. The University of Exeter. Archived from the original on 24 September 2007. Retrieved 30 January 2009. The European Community originally consisted of three separate Communities founded by treaty ...
    • Derek Urwin, University of Aberdeen. "Glossary of The European Union and European Communities". Retrieved 30 January 2009. European Community (EC). The often used singular of the European Communities.
  3. ^ "From 1963: The Two Faces of the Common Market". The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
  4. ^ "Maastricht Treaty". Maastricht Treaty. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  5. ^ by (10 November 2019). "European Economic Community". Jammu&Kashmir PCS Exam Notes. Retrieved 30 August 2024.


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