The characteristics of 358 varieties released in last century at 18 European countries were studied systematically. Variations of plant height, kernel number per ear and 1000-kernel weight were very rich. Indeed, plant height has been decreased significantly since the beginning of last century, and kernel number per spike has been increased. No association was detected between released time and 1000-kernel weight. The influence of plant height and heading date on both kernel number/spike and 1000-kernel weight was also analyzed. Importantly, some accessions with breeding potential traits were recommended to breeders. Pedigrees of several varieties were also presented in this paper.