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Kevin Patton's European Union Page
including information and links about this new entity in Europe
 Official EU resources click
here
Nonofficial EU resources click here
Some EU trivia:
roots the Euro members
flag anthem
parliament Europe Day
For discount books, CDs, and videos on the EU click here
Kevin Patton's Travel Tips and Links
Info on trips to Ireland and elsewhere
Kevin Patton's France (and Monaco) Page
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The theme music for this page is Beethoven's Ode to Joy, the anthem of the European Union.
 Official
European Union Resources
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Nonofficial EU resources
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Some
facts about the EU
Roots of the EU
The EU traces its roots to May 9*, 1950, when French Foreign Minister Robert
Schuman declared, “World peace cannot be safeguarded without
the making of creative efforts proportionate to the dangers which threaten it. . . . By
pooling basic production and by instituting a new High Authority, whose decisions will
bind France, Germany and other member countries, this proposal will lead to the
realization of the first concrete foundation of a European federation indispensable to the
preservation of peace”.
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EU Anthem
The EU anthem is the theme of the Ode to
Joy. "The theme to the Ode to
Joy, first heard as the prelude to the last movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's Ninth
Symphony, was recognized by the European Council in Milan on 28-29 June 1985, as the
anthem of the European Union. In this context, it also is an ode to freedom, to a sense of
community and to peace among the citizens of the 15 countries that have decided to unite
and to the others who freely decide to join them."
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EU Parliament
is the directly-elected democratic expression of the political
will of the peoples of the European Union, the largest multinational Parliament in the
world. The European Parliament includes over 600 members: 99 from Germany, 87 each form France, Italy and the United Kingdom, 64 from
Spain, 31 from the Netherlands, 25 each from Belgium, Greece and Portugal, 22 from Sweden,
21 from Austria, 16 each from Denmark and Finland, 15 from Ireland and 6 from Luxembourg.
Parliament normally sits in Strasbourg, where, plenary meetings are held for one week each
month. Some part-sessions and committee meetings are held in Brussels to facilitate
contacts with the Commission and the Council. Its Secretariat is based in Luxembourg.
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The Euro
€
The Euro is the
monetary unit of the EU. It's symbol is
€. It officially began to be used on 1 January 1999. For
more info, try these links:
Euro
Steps Leading to the
Euro Q&A about the
Euro What I should know
if I leave for a trip to Europe
Kevin
Patton's Lion Den Cheat Sheet Currency Chart
The euro is divided into 100 cents, just like the dollar.
The euro came into being on Jan 4, 1999, when the first business day of that
year opened. Traveler's checks in
euros are available from American Express, Visa, AAA,
and Thomas Cook.
All exchange rates of participating nations are
based on a single euro rate, they do not fluctuate independently. For today's euro exchange rate (against any currency) click here: Kevin
Patton's Lion Den Currency Converter
The first euro coins and bank notes
did not appear until Jan 1, 2002.
Notes
are 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 euros. Coins
are 1 and 2 euro pieces and
1,2,5, 10, 20, 50 cent pieces.
The nations participating (not all EU members
will participate right away) are:
Austria
Belgium
Finland
France
Germany
Ireland
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Portugal
Spain
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This
page was last updated on 04/01/07 08:34:22 PM
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