The story of the Council of Europe can be divided in two main periods, before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The first, the subject of this book, saw the Council's membership grow from 10 to 23, taking in nearly all the democracies in Western Europe by the time Finland joined on 5 May 1989. Throughout that period, the Assembly played a role in shaping the new Europe. It was also concerned with the Council's principles, playing a part in producing its conventions, and securing the abolition of the death penalty.--Publisher's description.