Seminar 2: Britain’s first application to join the EEC

This seminar asks you to think about the reasons why Harold Macmillan made the decision to
apply for British membership of the EEC in 1961. Using the important secondary article by
Peter Hennessy and the Cabinet Paper titled ‘The Six and the Seven: The Long-term
Objective’, students should think about the development of British policy towards European
unity between the Suez crisis of 1956 and Britain’s first application to join the EEC.
Hennessy’s chapter summarizes the groundbreaking ‘Future Policy Study’ that was submitted
to Cabinet in 1959 and it ends with some discussion of the primary source that we will discuss
in class. Hennessy’s work allows us to consider the primary source in its broader context,
which is central to understanding its importance. Do not neglect his discussion of the ‘Future
Policy Study’ because I will ask you about this as well. When reading both texts try to think
hard about the competing economic, political, and strategic pressures on Macmillan as Prime
Minister and whether you think his decision to apply for membership was the right option for
Britain at the time, or indeed the only conceivable one.

Primary source document:

 ‘The six and the seven: the long-term objective’, National Archives, Public Record
Office, CAB 129/102, 6 July 1960. Read carefully until the end of page 16, which are
the most important pages. But also try to have a quick glance at the remaining pages to
see if you think there are any additional points that we should consider.

Secondary reading/ academic debate:

 Peter Hennessy, Having it so good: Britain in the fifties (London, 2006), pp. 574-622.
The main historical debate is about why Britain applied for membership in 1961 and whether the
arguments in favour related more to economics/ trade, foreign policy/ Britain’s world role, or
appeasing British political opinion at home.

Think about the following questions before the seminar and while you are doing your reading:

Some questions:

1. What type of document is this? Who compiled it, for whom, and why? What can it tell us and
what can’t it tell us? Is it reliable? (much info can be gathered from the covering note and p. 1)

2. What motivated the production of this report in 1960? Is there evidence here to suggest that
1960 was a genuine turning point in British history and that the EEC was now regarded by
British officials as central to the country’s future? (pp. 5-7 & 14-16 are useful)

3. What other arguments were made in favour of applying to join the EEC? What were the
potential consequences of British membership? (start with the summary on pp. 1-4, but pp. 1-
16 are relevant)