First published in 1998, this volume asked what is Europe, what is Finland's position in Europe and tries to give an answer to these questions by defining first Europe in terms of its key political traditions and then locating Finland into this map of historical ideas.

Teija Tiilkainen explores the areas of institutional structure of the EU, the external identity of the European Union and Finland's EU Membership through her role as research director at the Centre for European Studies. She has edited numerous international volumes within these fields.

Part 1. Europe. 1. Introduction: The Historical Study of Political Ideas. 2. The Three Political Cultures of Western Europe. 3. The Idea of a United Europe. 4. The European Union: Problems in the Twentieth Century Effort of European Government-Building. Part 2. Finland. 5. The Historical Construction of Finland as a Political Community. 6. The Political Identity of a Borderland: An Analysis of the External Identity of Finland. 7. Conclusions: Europe and Finland; Defining the Political Identity of Finland in Western Europe.