Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi | |
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Count of Coudenhove-Kalergi | |
![]() von Coudenhove-Kalergi in 1930 | |
Born | Aoyama Eijiro 16 November 1894 Tokyo, Japan |
Died | 27 July 1972 Schruns, Austria | (aged 77)
Noble family | Coudenhove-Kalergi |
Father | Heinrich von Coudenhove-Kalergi |
Mother | Mitsuko Aoyama |
Occupation | Politician |
Richard Nikolaus Eijiro, Count of Coudenhove-Kalergi[1] (16 November 1894 – 27 July 1972), was a politician, philosopher, and count of Coudenhove-Kalergi. A pioneer of European integration, he served as the founding president of the Paneuropean Union for 49 years. His parents were Heinrich von Coudenhove-Kalergi, an Austro-Hungarian diplomat, and Mitsuko Aoyama, the daughter of an oil merchant, antiques-dealer and major landowner in Tokyo.[2] His childhood name in Japan was Eijiro Aoyama. Being a native Austrian-Hungarian citizen, he became a Czechoslovak citizen in 1919 and then took French citizenship from 1939 until his death.
His first book, Pan-Europa, was published in 1923 and contained a membership form for the Pan-Europa movement, which held its first Congress in 1926 in Vienna. In 1927, Aristide Briand was elected honorary president of the Pan-Europa movement. Public figures who attended Pan-Europa congresses included Albert Einstein, Thomas Mann and Sigmund Freud.[3]
Coudenhove-Kalergi was the first recipient of the Charlemagne Prize in 1950. The 1972–1973 academic year at the College of Europe was named in his honour. Coudenhove-Kalergi proposed Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" as the music for the European Anthem. He also proposed a Europe Day, a European postage stamp,[4] and many artifacts for the movement (e.g. badges and pennants).[5]