This publication is both a historical record and a commemoration covering the early years of the European Commission from 1958 to 1972, before the first enlargement. Forged by men and women with often very different backgrounds, the history of the first few years is one of crises but also of achievements which shaped the major milestones of European integration in almost every area of the economic life of the six founder countries: France, Germany, Italy and the three Benelux countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. A team of historians from the six founding member states have gathered together recollections of those who were actively engaged in this process in order to write a living history of the institution, its aspirations, successes and failures, as seen from the inside. The publication is also available in a paperback format (ISBN 9789279054945).