The European Borders at Stake: A Socio-Historical Study of the Schengen Area

Created in 1985, the Schengen area, which to this date gathers 26 European states, is a border-free area wherein EU citizens’ (as well as many non-EU nationals’) free movement is guaranteed. Those 26 countries have agreed to abolish internal borders control in exchange of the reinforcement of the area external borders. Its construction has been a long and tumultuous process during which the mere definition of internal and external European borders has been at stake. We propose to analyze this exact process through a socio-historical perspective based on the study of various national and European archives: the General Secretariat of the Council’s archives, the archives of the French ministry of Interior and of the ministry of European Affairs, and finally those of the president François Mitterrand. This way we'll be able to highlight the debates and the balance of power between member states which have structured the definition of European borders. Moreover, this research aims at pointing the role of bureaucracies in the bordering of Europe.