The lecture provided a comprehensive introduction to the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany: the Basic Law. In front of an attentive student audience Mr. Hill explained and illustrated the roots and historic origins of the consitution, its relevance and function in past and present. The German Basic Law as a living constitution provides the fundament to uphold democracy and rule of law. The lecture was followed by an open-discussion with many questions raised by the students and teaching staff.
The lecture indeed could not have been more timely: the 23 May 2023 constituted the 74th anniversary of the promulgation of the German Basic Law in 1949 by Konrad Adenauer. The name-giver of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung was not only the first Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany and founding father of the CDU party, but also Chairman of the Parliamentary Council which was tasked with drafting a new constitution for Germany after the horrors of the Nazi rule and World War II.
