Signing of the European Constitution

The Heads of State and Government and the Foreign Ministers of the 25 member states of the European Union signed in Rome the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe as well as the Final Act (which had been approved on June 18, 2004). The ceremony took place at the Capitol in the Sala Degli Orazi e Curiazi, the same room where the six original member states (France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg) signed the Treaty establishing the European Communities in 1957. The candidate countries Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey signed the Final Act. Croatia did not sign the Final Act but attended the ceremony. After signing the Treaty, the member states must ratify the Constitution according to their respective internal procedures.
However, the Treaty was subsequently rejected by France (May 29, 2005) and the Netherlands (June 1, 2005) in their respective national referendums. After the rejection of the Constitutional Treaty, the member states began the process of drafting the Treaty of Lisbon.