"Towards a Common Identity? Leadership and the Idea of Europe between 1969-1973.".

The paper explores the understandings of the idea of Europe of three key European leaders throughout 1969-1973. It is argued that the approaches to European integration taken by Edward Heath, Georges Pompidou, and Willy Brandt were not only influenced by national economic and political interests, but also by diverging understandings of the concept of 'Europe'. Through an elite-level analysis of primary sources and biographical material, the paper illustrates the importance of leadership for European integration, as well as the wide-ranging autonomy European leaders enjoyed on European affairs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]