It was not only a premiere for the book, but also for its initiator Cavaliere Giuseppe Nardi, Managing Partner of Dr. Theiss Naturwaren GmbH. The Siebenpfeiffer Foundation, together with Dr. Theiss Naturwaren GmbH and Conte Verlag, invited guests to the Schlossberg Hotel Homburg for the launch of the new publication "Demokratisch bis zum Anschlag - Stürmische Jahre der Saarpfalz". The elegant ballroom and songs from Siebenpfeiffer's time, which Jürgen Holzhauser and Hans Ruge performed with vocals and guitar, provided a stylish setting.
At the centre: a 114-page narrative with an introduction by literary scholar Jörg Bong, richly, colourfully and vividly illustrated. It revives the stormy period of the democracy movement at the beginning of the 1830s in the Saar Palatinate, which culminated in the Hambach Festival. The author is Wolfgang Kerkhoff from Kirkel, who was Head of Communications, Media Relations and Editing at the Saarland Ministry of Economic Affairs from 1991 to 2018.
Giuseppe Nardi explained his motives for the work in his welcoming address: "It was important to me that the story of Siebenpfeiffer is told in a lively and captivating language. Democracy and liberal rights are in danger in many regions of the world and are also occasionally called into question here in Germany. It is therefore all the more important that we make Siebenpfeiffer's values accessible to a broad public. We need new impetus for our understanding of democracy and our liberal rights." He is certain that the book will also appeal to visitors from outside the region who have not yet familiarised themselves with the history of democracy in the region around Homburg and Zweibrücken. "It is not a 'giant ham' that threatens to end up as a dust catcher in libraries and whose contents may hardly be recognised. The result is a book that is meant to be read and not collected," summarised Nardi.
Martin Baus, Managing Director of the Siebenpfeiffer Foundation, also had good arguments in favour of this and he promoted the hardcover as suitable bedtime reading: "At 580 grams, it's a light book and, measuring 27.5 by 19.5 centimetres, it's a handy book that won't fall heavily on your head if you fall asleep over it." Falling asleep not out of boredom, but because it could be late into the night before you want to put the book down again.
District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo also sees the publication as a treasure for many reasons and is proud: "In terms of content, it is something special against the backdrop of the 175th anniversary of the March Revolution and the Paulskirche constitution. The history of that time, which may seem dry as dust to younger people in particular, does not come across as dry as dust, but as creative, extremely entertaining, captivating and imaginative on the basis of scientific facts. Especially in this day and age, when political parties are trying to undermine our state and shape it according to their own ideas while protecting and exploiting democratic structures, it is essential that we constantly remind ourselves that democracy and liberal rights cannot be taken for granted and that we must take care of them." He hopes that "Demokratisch bis zum Anschlag - Stürmische Jahre der Saarpfalz" will reach a broad readership and also fascinate the younger generation. The District Administrator also speaks from Giuseppe Nardi's heart when he says that he would like the book to be passed on to secondary schools. With a view to previous initiatives such as the "Homburg Appeal", the "Homburg Alliance" and now this publication and Giuseppe Nardi's next project, the District Administrator wished that further valuable and special impulses from Homburg would continue to take place in the future as "Homburg Impulses", which illustrate and demonstrate the commitment of our Saar Palatinate to democracy, freedom and peace in a united Europe. He once again expressly thanked Giuseppe Nardi for this thought-provoking impulse.
In addition to the music at this event, which was well worth listening to, actor Nicolas Bertholet offered two exciting, entertaining readings. In addition, a panel discussion with the author Wolfgang Kerkhoff, the illustrator Volker Schmidt Gliaugir and the Conte publisher Stefan Wirtz - Martin Baus, as moderator with his illustrious panellists, described himself tongue-in-cheek as a "literary quartet, Homburg version" - provided deeper insights into the creation of the hard cover.
Last but not least, District Administrator Dr Gallo expressed his heartfelt thanks, also on behalf of the Saarpfalz district, to all those involved in the creation of the book in a thoroughly "sporting time" and thus breathed new life into the story of the courageous spokesmen and figureheads Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer, Johann Georg August Wirth and Friedrich Schüler - for eternity.
The book "Demokratisch bis zum Anschlag - Stürmische Jahre der Saarpfalz" (ISBN-13: 9783956022999) was published by Conte Verlag on 12 May and is available in bookshops.