Editing Saarland (section)

=== History after World War II ===
{{Further|Saar Protectorate}}
After [[World War II]], the Saarland came under French occupation again and became the [[Saar (protectorate)|Saar Protectorate]]. France did not annex the Saar or expel the local German population, in contrast to the fate of the territories which were merged by Poland and the USSR. In his speech "[[Restatement of Policy on Germany]]", made in Stuttgart on 6 September 1946, [[United States Secretary of State]] [[James F. Byrnes]] stated the U.S. position on detaching the Saar from Germany: "The United States does not feel that it can deny to France, which has been invaded three times by Germany in 70 years,<ref group="Note">In [[Franco-Prussian War|1870]], [[First Battle of the Marne|1914]], and [[Battle of France|1940]].</ref> its claim to the Saar territory".

The Saar and Ruhr areas were historically a central location for coal mining. This attracted the steel industry, which is essential for the production of munitions.<ref name="yoder">{{cite journal |last=Yoder Becker |first=Amos |date=July 1955 |title=The Ruhr Authority and the German Problem |url=https://doi.org/10.1017/S0034670500014261 |journal=Review of Politics |publisher=Cambridge University Press |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=345–358 |doi=10.1017/S0034670500014261 |s2cid=145465919}}</ref>{{rp|346}} The [[Treaty of Paris (1951)]] established the [[European Coal and Steel Community]], which led to the termination of the [[International Authority for the Ruhr]] (whose purpose was to regulate Ruhr coal and steel production and distribution). However, the Treaty sidestepped the issue of the Saar protectorate: an attached protocol stated Germany and France agreed the Treaty would have no bearing on their views of the status of the Saar.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=legissum:xy0022|title=Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community, ECSC Treaty &#124; EUR-Lex|website=eur-lex.europa.eu}}</ref>

In 1948, the French government established [[Saarland University]] under the auspices of the [[University of Nancy]]. It is the principal university in the state, the other being {{Ill|Saarland University of Applied Sciences|de|Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft des Saarlandes}} (HTW Saar).

The Saarland was headed by a military governor from 30 August 1945: [[Gilbert Grandval|Gilbert Yves Edmond Grandval]] (1904–1981), who remained, on 1 January 1948, as [[High Commissioner]], and from January 1952 – June 1955 as the first of two French ambassadors, his successor being Éric de Carbonnel (1910–1965) until 1956.
Saarland, however, was allowed a regional administration very early, consecutively headed by:
* a president of the Government:
** 31 July 1945 – 8 June 1946: Hans Neureuther, non-partisan
* a chairman of the (until 15 December 1947, Provisional) Administration Commission:
** 8 June 1946 – 20 December 1947: Erwin Müller (1906–1968), non-partisan
* Minister-presidents (as in any state):
** 20 December 1947 – 29 October 1955: [[Johannes Hoffmann (CVP)|Johannes Hoffmann]] (1890–1967), [[Christian People's Party of Saarland|CVP]]
** 29 October 1955 – 10 January 1956  [[Heinrich Welsch]] (1888–1976), non-partisan
** 10 January 1956 – 4 June 1957: [[Hubert Ney]] (1892–1984), [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|CDU]]

In 1954, France and the [[West Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]] (West Germany) developed a detailed plan called the {{lang|fr|Saarstatut}} (Saar Statute) to establish an independent Saarland. It was signed as an agreement between the two countries on 23 October 1954 as one of the [[Paris Pacts]], but a [[Saar Statute referendum, 1955|plebiscite]] held on 23 October 1955 rejected it by 67.7%.

On 27 October 1956, the [[Saar Treaty]] declared that Saarland should be allowed to join West Germany, which it did on 1 January 1957. This was the last significant international border change in Europe until the [[fall of Communism]] over 30 years later.

The Saarland's unification with West Germany was sometimes referred to as the {{lang|de|[[Kleine Wiedervereinigung]]}} ('little reunification', in contrast with the post-Cold War [[German reunification|reunification with the GDR]]). After unification, the [[Saar franc]] remained as the territory's currency until West Germany's [[Deutsche Mark]] replaced it on 7 July 1959. The Saar Treaty established that French, not English as in the rest of West Germany, should remain the first foreign language taught in Saarland schools; this provision was still largely followed after it was no longer binding.

Since 1971, Saarland has been a member of [[SaarLorLux]], a [[euroregion]] created from Saarland, [[Lorraine (province)|Lorraine]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Rhineland Palatinate]], and [[Wallonia]].

[[File:1953 SAAR ID issued under the French occupation of the territory.jpg|thumb|1953 SAAR ID issued under the French occupation of the territory.]]