This book invites you to discover the role played by one of the major

political forces to have grown up in the European Parliament, from its

creation in 1953 to its comprehensive victory in the European elections

in June 2009.

The Christian Democrat Group, which subsequently became the Group

of the European People's Party, brings together most of the centre,

moderate and Conservative parties in the Europe of 27. Its views have a

decisive and growing influence on EU decision-making. The EPP Group,

which has played a part in major European events from the birth of the

Community in the midst of the Cold War to the introduction of the Single

Market and the euro, from the reunification of the continent after the fall

of the Berlin Wall in 1989 to the impact of globalisation and the economic

crisis, is above all a collection of men and women who share the same

values and the same commitment to European integration.

Drawn from unpublished archives and interviews, the book is a

valuable source of information for anyone wanting a better knowledge

and understanding of the history of European integration.