How did Jean Monnet, an entrepreneurial internationalist who never held an elective office, never joined a political party, and never developed any significant popular following in his native France, become one of the most influential European statesmen of the twentieth century? How did he conceive of, and become instrumental in achieving, European integration? Addressing these questions, Sherrill Brown Wells's political biography also offers insights into the role of the fledgling community of European states in establishing peace in war-ravaged Europe in the aftermath of World War II.