In the early 1950s, several projects were launched by the six founding member states. The best-known of these, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), was a great success. Plans for a European Health Community, proposed by Robert Schuman, did not make it past the preparatory conference of 12 December 1952. The European Defence Community (EDC) was the subject of a treaty signed in Paris on 24 May 1952, then ratified by 5 of the 6 member states: it was rejected by the French National...