living standards and promoting international development, including in Africa. Legacy The Schuman Declaration marked the beginning of post-World War II Franco-German cooperation and the re-integration of West Germany into Western Europe. Konrad Adenauer, Chancellor of West Germany, said "[t]hat's our breakthrough" in regards to the Declaration. The legacy of this initiative was the signing of the Treaty of Paris on 18 April 1951 by six European countries (France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands). The Treaty established the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the first of three European Communities, and a predecessor of the European Union. The ECSC introduced a common market for steel and coal across the member countries, with freely set market prices, free movement of products, and without customs duties or taxes, subsidies, or restrictive practices. It set up a High Authority to monitor compliance with competition rules and ensure price transparency. Schuman was a proponent of further European integration through an (ultimately unratified) European defence community. In 1958 he became the first President of the predecessor to the European Parliament. When he left office, the Parliament bestowed on him the title "Father of Europe". May 9 has been designated "Europe Day" to celebrate peace and unity in Europe because of the significance of the Schuman Declaration on 9 May 1950. See also Council of Europe History of the European Communities (1945–1957) Robert Schuman European Coal and Steel Community Notes Bibliography Diebold, William. The Schuman plan: a study in economic cooperation, 1950–1959 (Praeger, 1959). Hitchcock, William I. "France, the Western Alliance, and the Origins of the Schuman Plan, 1948–1950" Diplomatic History (1997) 21#4: 603–630. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-7709.00090 Kaiser, Wolfram. Christian democracy and the origins of European Union (Cambridge UP, 2007). Lovett, A. W. "The United States and the Schuman Plan. a study in French diplomacy 1950–1952." Historical Journal 39#2 (1996): 425–455. McDougall, Walter. "Political Economy versus National Sovereignty: French Structures for German Economic Integration after Versailles." The Journal of Modern History 51#1 (1979): 4–23. Mahant, Edelgard Elsbeth. Birthmarks of Europe: the origins of the European Community reconsidered (Gower Publishing, 2004). Scheingold, Stuart A. The rule of law in European integration: The path of the Schuman Plan (Quid Pro Books, 2013). Shore, Cris. "Inventing the 'People's Europe': Critical Approaches to European Community 'Cultural Policy.'" Man 28, no. 4. (Dec., 1993): 779–800. Shore, Cris and Annabel Black. "The European Communities and the Construction of Europe." Anthropology Today 8,