"I am here in a country that hardly resembles the rest of Europe," said the French philosopher Montesquieu in 1729. Europe, then known as the 'old continent', was an aggregate of great powers, which had no interest in any sort of unification. Nearly three centuries later, new nations have emerged and new industrial powers have developed. International relations are by far more complex and the concept of Europe as a Community, economical as well as political, made its way into the minds of European countries' leaders. Agreements were signed in Paris (1951), and then in Rome (1957), setting up a European Community between just six countries. The reforms being mainly economical so far, this partnership is now composed of 15 and soon there will be 25 member states.
             Only a year after being accepted into the European Union, Britain was already regarded as an 'awkward partner': a reputation that still remains today. In this essay I will not try to write the history of Britain in the European Union from its entry in 1973. My aim is to take a look at Britain's attitude regarding certain events of the composition of the European Union, and discuss whether or not this attitude is a factor of Britain's 'awkward' reputation. We will try to understand the criteria on which decisions were made and assess the degree of Britain's 'awkwardness' to each of these. As the process of integration was spread over fifty years and is still in progress, and since all historical developments are issued from previous events, we will adopt a chronological approach.
             This essay looks back as far as what seems to be a relevant explanation for Britain's special consideration of Europe. By the end of the nineteenth century, colonial and civil wars, religion, empire, early industrial revolution and a certain parliamentary "freedom" had combined to forge a British patriotism en...