Legal History Of Europe

Question 1

What were the different interpretations of what defines Europe

Answer 1

1. The term Europe comes from Europe, a princess whom Zeus abducted from Tyrus
   to Kreta. Zeus had fallen in love with Europe so he decided to take her with him where he lived, Kreta. (Crete)
2. The term Europe is also believed to refer to what was once the Roman Empire
3. Another way to refer to the origin of Europe is by defining it by its religious nature
   that originated in the Holy Roman Empire (judeo and Christian tradition).
4. Europe could also symbolize what was once the Ottoman Empire (which Turkey
   was also part of).

Question 2

When was Europe called Napoleonic Europe

Answer 2

1812

Question 3

What did the congress of Vienna in 1815 aim to do

Answer 3

• After Napoleon’s defeat in 1813, the whole Empire had to be reevaluated.

-the congress aimed to decide what should be the future of Napoleon’s legacy

-objective: restore the old balance of the Empire and prevent the waging of war

Question 4

Who was Claude Henri

Answer 4

-write a book-> (On the reorganization of the European Society of 1814)

-before the congress of Vienna took place

-book was on how to prevent future wars in Europe form a legal point of view

Question 5

What was teh main problem, that Claude Henri discusses in his book, regarding the presentation of wars in Europe

Answer 5

-The main problem according to him was that counties would always rely on treaty laws in order to prevent wars.

-The solution was to hand part of their sovereignty – instead of written treaties, countries should transfer their power.

Question 6

What happened when Claude Henri’s ideas were not implemented

Answer 6

• The Vienna restoration was not able to prevent wars:
- Establishment of a new German Empire in Versailles in 1870 - German French war
- WWI: ended in 1919 by Peace treaty of Versailles
- WWII: caused in part by Dictate of Versailles (Hitler)

• In 1919 the League of Nations was established as an intergovernmental organization (no transfer of power was needed) - progress can be seen in the Pact of Paris - WWI

• In 1945 the United Nations was established as an intergovernmental and supranational organization - Iraq invasion

-> so wars continued

Question 7

After the capitulation for the German army in 1945 and Hitler’s suicide, what state was established and what plan was created?

Answer 7

-Stunde Null was announced

-plan to settle the future of the country: the Morgenthau plan

Question 8

What was the Moregnthau plan 1944

Answer 8

-plan proposed the creation of a primarily agricultural society by dismantle all industry in Germany

• decision was made at the Yalta Conference 1945:

1. Denazification
   2.Demilitarisation
2. Germany was to be divided between the allies into occupation zones

Question 9

After the Second World War what two powers determined the fate of the world

Answer 9

-US
-USSR

-> COLD WARRRRRR

Question 10

What were the two main threats during the Cold War

Answer 10

-communism e.g e.g. in 1948, a communist coup d’etat took power with Stalin’s assistance to invade Czechoslovakia

-The cold war which had Russia and US as opponents.
-> Russia claimed spheres of interests

Question 11

Who was Winston Churchill

Answer 11

-important figure during the Cold War who coined the terms ‘iron curtain’

-in 1946 he promoted the European Movement

Question 12

In 1948, Winston Churchill pronounces his ideas regarding the European Movement in The Hague, what are they?

Answer 12

• Political union
• To safeguard human rights
• To establish a European Parliament and Court

Question 13

What was the impact of the European Movement

Answer 13

-the creation of the Council of Europe in Strasburg (1950).

Question 14

What was the treaty of Utrecht 1713

Answer 14

was an agreement between Britain and France, concluded on 11 April 1713 at Utrecht in the Netherlands, as part of the series of treaties ending the War of the Spanish Succession.

Question 15

what was the kellogg-briand pact of 1928

Answer 15

international agreement in which states promised not to use war to resolve “disputes or conflicts of whatever nature or of whatever origin they may be, which may arise among them”.

Question 16

What does Stunde NulL mean

Answer 16

Zero hour

Question 17

When was the European Convention on Human rights created

Answer 17

1950

Question 18

Is the rulings of the European court in Strasbourg binding

Answer 18

Yes, brining on the state that is a party in the proceedings

-> a ruling can also act as a precedent for other European countries that are not directly involved in the proceedings.

Question 19

What does article 267 TFEU from the EU treaty state

Answer 19

does not make it compulsory for the highest national judges to submit a case to the European Court in Strasburg in a preliminary ruling.

Question 20

What was the 1979 Marckx case

Answer 20

A not-married mother had given birth. According to Belgium law, there was no legal bond between mother and child without marriage – she had to either adopt her child or appeal to the court to recognize maternity. However, in both cases, the child would always have fewer inheritance rights than a child born within a marriage.

Question 21

What did the ECHR rule in the Marckx case 1979

Answer 21

-The European court ruled that there was a violation of family rights according to the ECHR. -> Belgium, therefore, was obliged to amend their own civil code.

-The Dutch legislator realized that the new BW did not comply with the criteria of the Court either, therefore in 1982, a change was made – an illegitimate child not only has family-law relations to its mother but also to the mother’s blood relatives.

Question 22

What was the purpose of the ECHR treaty

Answer 22

-rights against government

1. Right to life
2. Ban on torture
3. Ban on slavery (forced labour)
4. Right to fair trial

Question 23

what was the Hirst v. Uk case 2005 ECHR

Answer 23

the ECtHR ruled that the UK’s ban on all serving prisoners from voting contravenes Article 3 of Protocol No 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)

Question 24

what was the HUman rights act 1998

Answer 24

The Human Rights Act 1998 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which received royal assent on 9 November 1998, and came into force on 2 October 2000. Its aim was to incorporate into UK law the rights contained in the European Convention on Human Rights.

Question 25

What was the aim of teh Marshall plan 1947

Answer 25

Intended to recover EU’s economy

Question 26

How did Germany become a Trizonia

Answer 26

France upheld opposition to the British and American attempts to the reinstatement of a central German administration in response to Soviet influence. The British and Americans
went on their own and fused their occupation zones (Bizonia) - which eventually became Trizonia.

Question 27

When was the Berlin blockade

Answer 27

1948

Question 28

What was the name of the monitoring body that would exist to regulate the coal and steel production of the Ruhr region.

Answer 28

1948 International Authority for the Ruhr (IAR) is created

Question 29

When was the German federal republic born

Answer 29

1949 -> Germany

Question 30

Hen was German Democratic Republic born

Answer 30

1949-> russian

Question 31

Why did the restoration of Germany cause problems, especially for France

Answer 31

it was predicted that the economic control over Western Germany via the IAR would become even harder in the future. Thus initiatives were developed to take away the coal and steel jurisdiction from the new German state – for instance by Adenaeur.

Question 32

What was the next attempt made to take a way the coal and steel jurisdiction from the new German state

Answer 32

Another attempt was made by Monnet, director of the Pere de l’Europe, who proposed a plan to prevent Germany from starting a new war, namely by transferring its sovereignty to institutions

Question 33

Who was Schumann

Answer 33

-backed up Monnet’s plan
-in 1950 introduced the European Community of steal and coal -> supranational organisation

Question 34

Why was the creation of the European Community of Steel and coal (ECSC) so important

Answer 34

-The first time that sovereign powers were transferred to nations states to separate institutions – IAR replaced by ECSC in 1952

-marked the beginning of the European integration process that reached a high when in 1957 two other European communities were created by the Treaty of Rome: the EEC and the EURATOM

Question 35

What happened when the three institutions: ECSC, EEC and the EURATOM merged in 1965

Answer 35

-1992 the treaty of Maastricht was created and the European Union was born

Question 36

What does the EU consist of

Answer 36

1. Council of ministers
2. Commission
3. parliament
4. Court of justice EU

Question 37

Originally, whey was teh Eu established

Answer 37

-only as an economical union
BUT after the German reunification in 1990 it also became a political union.-> Maastricht 1992

Question 38

How can institutions exercise the Union’s competencies

Answer 38

shall adopt regulations, directives etc. Impact on legal systems of the EU member states (art. 288 TFEU)

Question 39

What are regulations

Answer 39

General rules

Question 40

What are directives

Answer 40

-harmonisation
-not laws that intervene in national legislation

Question 41

Directives v. Regulations

Answer 41

-directives : directives allow member states some flexibility in how they achieve the specified goal. Member states are free to choose the form and method of implementation.

-regulations: Direct Applicability: Regulations are immediately applicable in all member states as soon as they come into force.

-> no tsansposition into national law

Question 42

Where is the court of justice of the EU located

Answer 42

Luxembourg

Question 43

What does art. 267 TFEU state

Answer 43

The Court of Justice of the European Union shall have jurisdiction to give preliminary rulings concerning:
a) The interpretation of the Treaties
b) The validity and interpretation of acts of the institutions, bodies, offices or
agencies of the Union

Question 44

What does the provision art. 267 TFEU allow

Answer 44

→ The national judge is in control of the application

→ The interpretation can be submitted to a European judge by lower national judges

Only the highest national judges (e.g. Supreme Court) are expressly obliged to submit a case in which a question of EU law is involved for a preliminary ruling

Such provision resembles authentic interpretation but is not - the question is referred back to Luxemburg, but the Court is not the author of the European laws.

Question 45

What does the court of Justice of the EU, located in Luxembourg have the authority to do

Answer 45

has the authority to provide guidance on the interpretation and validity of EU laws. This includes clarifying the meaning of treaties and assessing the validity and interpretation of actions taken by EU institutions.

When a national judge, like a judge from the highest court in a country (e.g., Supreme Court), faces a case involving EU law, they can ask the Court of Justice in Luxembourg for advice before making a final decision. This process is called a preliminary ruling.

However, it’s important to note that the Luxembourg court doesn’t make the final decision on the case; it only provides an interpretation of EU law. The national judge still has the authority to apply this interpretation to the specific case in their own country.

So, the national judge remains in control of how the EU law is applied in their country, and they can seek guidance from the EU court for clarification. This system ensures consistency in interpreting EU laws across member states.