EC09-1973 European Community map enlargement

The 1973 enlargement of the European Communities was the first enlargement of the European Communities (EC), now the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

(EU).

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

(UK) acceded to the EC on 1 January 1973.

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

and

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...

also joined the EC as part of the United Kingdom and Denmark respectively, but the Danish

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

, the other British Overseas Territories and the Crown dependencies of the United Kingdom did not join the EC. Ireland and Denmark both held referendums in 1972 in

May May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the third of seven months to have a length of 31 days. May is a month of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. Therefore, May ...

and

October October is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and the sixth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. The eighth month in the old calendar of Romulus , October retained its name (from Latin and Greek ''ôc ...

respectively, and the United Kingdom held a referendum in 1975, on membership of the EC, all which approved membership of the EC.

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

planned to accede, but this was rejected in a referendum held in September 1972. In 1992 Norway again applied to join, but voters again rejected the proposal in a 1994 referendum. Greenland later withdrew from the EC on 1 January 1985 after a referendum in 1982. This was followed by the United Kingdom holding a referendum in 2016 on membership which resulted in the United Kingdom voting to leave the EU.

Background

The United Kingdom was still recovering from the economic cost of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. The Republic of Ireland, while an independent state, was economically dependent on the UK, which accounted for nearly 75% of Ireland's exports, as codified in the Anglo-Irish Free trade agreement of 1966. In 1960 the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) was established and was formed by

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, Sweden, Switzerland and the

. These countries were often referred to as the Outer Seven, as opposed to the

Inner Six The Inner Six, also known as the Six, the Six founders, or the founding members of the European Union, refers to Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, the six founding member states of the European Communities, now ...

of the founding members of the

European Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisb ...

(EC). The EFTA was founded by a convention known as the Stockholm Convention in 1960, with the aim of liberalisation of trade in goods amongst its member states. On 31 July 1961 the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark applied to join the EC. In 1963, after negotiations, France vetoed the United Kingdom's application because of the aversion of Charles de Gaulle to the UK, which he considered a "trojan horse" for the United States. De Gaulle resigned the French presidency in 1969. In the 1970s, the EFTA states concluded free trade agreements with the EC.

Impact

References

{{European Union topics, state=collapsed 1973 in Europe History of the European Union January 1973 events in Europe 1973 in international relations

Background

Impact

See also

References