ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of empirical contribution to the existing literature on the European Union (EU) enlargement and aims to offer a theoretical contribution to the literature on international society by treating the EU as a regional international society which tends to expand outwards. It compares the enlargement process with that of the historical expansion of the European society of states. Similarities between the two processes appear to lead to the conclusion that such a comparative study would help one to explain and understand better the process of the EU's enlargement and the events associated with it. With reference to the EU's enlargement, the chapter seeks to answer questions like: why does the EU seek to expand its membership? How does the EU approach each particular candidature and why? It tackles the issue or the EU's enlargement from the international society perspective adopted by the English School of International Relations.
