Asset-Herausgeber

Veranstaltungsberichte

Europe and the Middle-East: Studying the Past, Learning for the Future

Organized in cooperation with the Adenauer Division for the Study of European Politics and Society at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, the seminar offered the students the opportunity to study the historical and political impact of the European countries in Jerusalem and the Middle-East during the 19th and 20th centuries, while familiarizing themselves in situ with the European institutions in the city of Jerusalem.

Asset-Herausgeber

The first part of the seminar was devoted to the visit and study of some European Institutions and charities in Jerusalem such as the Dormition Abbey, the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer and the Auguste-Victoria Compound (all three were established by Kaiser Wilhelm II) and the Anglican Christ Church. The study tour also included the German Colony, named after the German Templers, a religious group which settled throughout the Holy Land in the mid-19th century. In the second part, Prof. Haim Goren gave a general and comprehensive lecture, using old documents and pictures.

http://www.kas.de/wf/doc/1229-1442-2-30.jpg
Prof. Haim Goren delivering his lecture

Through the visit and lecture Prof. Haim Goren explained the geo-political background of the European involvement in the Middle East in the period starting from the Egyptian Rule (1830’s) until the First World War. The lecture, describing the leading ‘forces’ on the ground during that period (the Ottoman Empire, Britain, Russia, France, Prussia and later on Germany) related to the seats of the European institutions and organizations visited and explained earlier. As demonstrated in the list of visited buildings and monuments, special emphasis was given to Germany – starting from the close cooperation between Prussia and the Ottoman Empire to the relations of German Kaiser with Theodor Herzl and the Zionist movement.

Through their establishments in the Middle East at large and more particularly in the Holy Land, the European powers, among them Germany, created solid economic, social and cultural networks, which are still active today.

Dr. Hänsel presented an outline of the continuous German and European relations to Israel and emphasized their significance. The study of past and present relations can further constructive cooperation and exchanges among the members of the younger generation who are not only studying European politics and society today but are already playing an important role in shaping the future relations between Israel and Europe.

Asset-Herausgeber

comment-portlet

Asset-Herausgeber