European People's Party

THOMAS JANSEN studied at the universities of Bonn and Munich, before lecturing in Political Science at the University of Mainz. He was assistant to Walter Hallstein and adviser on European policy of the CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group in the German Bundestag, 1970-71, and then personal adviser to the chairman, Rainer Barzel MP, 1971-75. He became Deputy Secretary general and Secretary general of the European federalist movement from 1975-80. He further advanced the course of European integration in roles including the Editor-in-Chief of Dokumente. Zeitschrift fur den deutsch-franzosischen Dialog 1978-81, Director of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Rome, 1981-83, and at the same time Honorary Secretary-general of the International European Movement. He was Secretary-general of the European People's Party (EPP) and of the European Union of Christian Democrats (EUCD), 1983-94; since 1995 he has been a Member of the Forward Studies Unit of the European Commission. He has published several books and numerous essays and articles on the problems of international relations and European unification.

• Foreword; Jacques Santer , President of the European Commission PART ONE: THE EVOLUTION OF A EUROPEAN PARTY SYSTEM The Emergence of European Parties The 1994 European Elections, Transforming the Party Landscape PART TWO: COOPERATION BETWEEN CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS AND THE BIRTH OF THE EUROPEAN PEOPLE'S PARTY The International Secretariat of Democratic Parties Inspired by Christianity, 1925-1939 The 'Nouvelles Equipes Internationales', 1948-1965 The European Union of Christian Democrats, 1965-1976 The Christian Democratic Group in the European Parliament, 1952-1979 Founding the European People's Party, 1976-1978 PART THREE: THE EVOLUTION OF THE EUROPEAN PEOPLE'S PARTY Congresses and European Elections, 1979-1990 The Conference of Government and Party Leaders, 1983-1995 Attempts to Merge the EUCD with the EPP, and the Revision of the Statutes, 1985-1990 Shaping the Programme, 1989-1993 Bringing in the Conservatives, 1989-1995 PART FOUR: STRUCTURES, PROBLEMS, AND PERSPECTIVES What is the Meaning of 'Christian Democratic' in the European Context? Working Methods of the Party Bodies The Associations The EUCD and the New Parties in Central and Eastern Europe The Protagonists Relationships between Member Parties and the EPP Group A Personal Postscript Annexes Index

'The subject of this book is crucial to the future of the European Union and its political system. The growth of transnational political parties is a phenomenon which has, at best, been dealt with very inadequately, both in academic and political literature. Indeed, Thomas Jansen's book is the first monograph about the birth and development of a European party. As Secretary-General of the EPP, Thomas Jansen was for more than a decade intimately involved in the process he describes. He now turns his distinguished attention to an academic study of the subject. In his search for objectivity he has largely succeeded in putting aside his personal, practical, and political involvement. It makes for a particularly pleasing and unusual book.' - Jacques Santer, President of the European Commission