the way the peoples of Europe perceived their own identities .
During the second half of the 20th century , the two founding fathers pursued their commitment to the federalist project .
Jean Monnet through the creation of the Comité d ’ action pour les Etats-Unis d ’ Europe , which operated until 1969 , and Altiero Spinelli through his political commitment , which saw in particular the creation of the Crocodile Club , founded with the aim of reforming the European institutions from within in a federalist direction .
The political integration of Europe forged ahead from decade to decade through – among other things – the extension of the powers of the European Parliament , as legitimised by the granting of direct universal suffrage in 1979 , and the introduction of European citizenship .
In mirror image to what is happening as regards the latter ( which complements rather than replaces national citizenship ), one might ask whether European commemoration can be constructed in a manner that is complementary rather than antagonistic to national remembrance , and whether European history can be interpreted and taught from a more inclusive perspective which highlights its multifaceted nature .
It is certainly not possible to change the past , understood as a succession of historical events , but it is possible to change its meaning by giving it a new and alternative reading .
In the case of the European Union , commemoration therefore goes hand in hand with establishing a multi-perspective narrative of Europe ’ s past and that of its peoples . A narrative able to identify
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