European leaders spent most of 2013 saying that the worst part of the European crisis was over and that growth would return to the Continent in 2014. But not only did the crisis continue this year, it also focused increasingly on the three largest economies of the eurozone. Ironically, bailout countries such as Ireland, Portugal, Greece and Spain were relatively calm in 2014, while Germany, France and Italy were at the heart of a political and economic crisis that has slowly been expanding from Europe's fringes to its core. Between 2010 and 2012, all eyes were on the European periphery . Emergency summits were held and extraordinary measures were taken to prevent Greece from leaving the eurozone, Portugal from defaulting on its debt and Spain's banks from collapsing — some of which did, but in a controlled way.