(5-97) July 1 will be an important day in the history of China and the world. This date, however, might have been preceded by another: March 6, the 99-year lease of Jiaozhou, forced on China by the German Empire, would have expired. But Germany lost the protectorate to Japan in November 1914 and today little remains of this occupation but a few buildings and the brewery of Qingdao, which still uses the German recipe to brew a good beer.

This episode of history would not be worth mentioning had it not had another consequence. Among the Germans living in the protectorate was a young theologian, Richard Wilhelm. Beside his work as parson, teacher and missionary, he became interested in the Chinese culture and language, which he studied intensively.

When, following the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911, former imperial officials fled into the foreign possessions, Wilhelm contacted them and received help in his studies of the Chinese classic texts. Most important was the help of the former Chinese Minister for Education, Lao Nai Xuan. With him, Wilhelm translated and interpreted the "Yi Qing", the "Book of Changes." This translation became a standard and the basis for translations to other European languages. Wilhelm also translated Confucius' writings and the "Dao De Qing."

After the end of German rule in Jiaozhou, Wilhelm at first worked at the University of Beijing. Later, he returned to Germany, where he founded the "China Institute" in Frankfurt am Main in 1924.

In a time of turmoil after the Great War, inflation and economic depression, with the old values of life called into question, Wilhelm's works were eagerly accepted. It is largely due to his writings that the opinion about China changed from negative to positive in Germany. After a long time, people finally were willing to see China as a civilized nation and even to admire it.

Note: This essay is based on an article by Petra Kolonko in "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" of March 8, 1997.