Pierre Werner – A life dedicated to Luxembourg and Europe

• Historical Archives of the European Union
• Alcide De Gasperi Research Centre

Dr Viviane Reding and EUI Secretary General Armando Barucco will inaugurate a special exhibit dedicated to the memory of Pierre Werner, one of the main architects of European Economic and Monetary Union. The exhibit will be opened at the Badia Fiesolana and subsequently installed at the Historical Archives of the European Union.

As a long-standing senior civil servant, minister and Prime Minister from the end of the Second World War until the mid-1980s, Pierre Werner gave his country, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, a voice that would be heard beyond its borders.

He was closely involved in integration and policy-making efforts at the national, regional and European levels. He was an excellent listener and known for his skills of understanding and reconciling apparently incompatible positions. He was committed to defending the vital interests of Luxembourg and Europe over the long term. Pierre Werner is unanimously recognised as one of the main architects of Economic and Monetary Union: the 1970 Werner Report sketched out the fundamental features of what would later become the euro.

Based essentially on Pierre Werner's private collections and other relevant Luxembourg and European archives, the exhibition illustrates the life of Pierre Werner from various angles: his personality, his role as a father and family man, his social ties and intellectual interests, while also outlining his thinking and his achievements as a politician and committed European.

The exhibit is organised by Europe Direct University of Luxembourg (EDIC), University of Luxembourg and Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C2DH).

Exhibit design, texts, documentation and layout: Henri Werner