{"id":11697,"date":"2026-07-15T15:54:39","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T13:54:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/?page_id=11697"},"modified":"2026-07-15T16:00:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T14:00:18","slug":"11697-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/11697-2\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

1940s <\/strong><\/h1>\n

23.08.1946 The founding of the States of Gr\u00fcndung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hannover und Schleswig-Holstein<\/strong>
\nThe British military government dissolved the former Prussian provinces and founded the States of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hanover (later Lower Saxony) and Schleswig-Holstein. (mehr \u2026)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Prof. Dr. Emil Lehnratz (second from the left)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

01.01.1949 Chairman of the Governing Board<\/strong>
\nFrom 1949 until 1968, the Chairman of the Governing Board is Prof. Dr. Emil Lehnratz.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
(from the left) Sir Robert Birley, Lilo Milchsack<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

09.04.1949 The founding of the German-English Society\u00a0 <\/strong>On the initiative of Lilo Milchsack and six other Dusseldorf citizens, the German-English Society was established in Wittlaer (near Dusseldorf). They were supported by Sir Robert Birley who was then the Education Adviser to the British Military Government of Germany. On 19th April 1949, the German-English Society was formally registered in the associations register at the Dusseldorf District Court.<\/p>\n

1950s<\/strong><\/h1>\n

1950s: In the 1950s, the German question always came up in connection with the Cold war.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Adam Stegerwald House<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1950: The K\u00f6nigswinter conference took place for the first time in the Adam Stegerwald House <\/strong>near Bonn. The topic of the conversation among the present German and British social workers was the improvement of the living conditions of the working class after the end of the war.<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.01.1950 The founding of regional working group <\/strong>
\nThe first regional working group was founded in Essen.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
K\u00f6nigswinter Conference 1951<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1951: From this date the German-English conferences are held annually. The second conference, entitled “The Role and Responsibility of the Press in a Democracy,” received much attention in both countries, as major newspapers such as The Time, the Daily Telegraph, and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung were present.<\/strong><\/p>\n

1952: A debate about the British Island and the Continent arose for the first time among political, economic, and intellectual leaders from Germany and Britain.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1960s<\/h1>\n

In the early 1960s: An informal dialogue of an annual English-German dialogue in the course of the Young K\u00f6nigswinter Conference emerged on the success story of K\u00f6nigswinter in the early 1960s. Within this framework, executives from both countries were brought together.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.07.1962 The first \u201cGerman-English Youth Conference\u201d<\/strong>
\nThe first Berlin \u201cGerman-English Youth Conference\u201d (today the Young K\u00f6nigswinter Conference) took place in Berlin under the leadership of the German-British Youth Exchange (der Deutsch-Britische Jugendaustausch).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Young K\u00f6nigswinter Conference 1963<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

01.01.1964 K\u00f6nigswinter Conference in Great Britain<\/strong>
\nFor the first time, the K\u00f6nigswinter Conference took place in Great Britain, Oxford. The conference convened in Oxford, rather than in K\u00f6nigswinter, for the first time. In contrast to the K\u00f6nigswinter conference, the first young K\u00f6nigswinter conference took place in 1964 in Oxford.<\/p>\n

1965: Since then, government ministers regularly attend the annual K\u00f6nigswinter conferences to give a speech at least after dinner.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Frank Roberts<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1966: The K\u00f6nigswinter was cancelled only once, in 1966, due to new elections in the UK, otherwise it took place year after year since 1950.<\/strong><\/p>\n

1968: Frank Roberts was appointed to the first Chairman of the newly established British Steering Committee, which has acted since then as a counterpart to the Deutsch-Britische Gesellschaft in organizing the conference.<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.01.1969 Chairman of the Governing Board<\/strong>
\nFrom 1969 until 1977, the Chairman of the Governing Board is Hans von Herwarth \u2020, Ambassador (ret.)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1970s<\/h1>\n

1970: On the initiative of Mr. Roberts, the K\u00f6nigswinter conference took place for the second time in Cambridge. He had known Lilo Milchsack since 1951 and supported from the beginning her work at the Foreign Office.<\/strong><\/p>\n

1973: After a third successful application for membership of the EEC, following the resignation of De Gaulle, Britain finally had every reason to celebrate in K\u00f6nigswinter.<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.01.1975 Trademark \u201cK\u00f6nigswinter Conference\u201d<\/strong>
\nSince 1975, the annual \u201cK\u00f6nigswinter Conference\u201d alternates between Great Britain (Oxford\/Cambridge) and\"\"<\/a> Germany. Following the 1974 conference held in Edinburgh, the \u201cK\u00f6nigswinter Conference\u201d has become a trademark.<\/p>\n

1979: Finally, in 1979, there was an important change. A panel discussion brought together parliamentarians representing all major parties in the host country. This gave the guest delegation a good insight into the domestic debates which formed the background of foreign policy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

1980s<\/h1>\n

1980: In 1980, the Foreign Office and the Ausw\u00e4rtiges Amt together succeeded in rescheduling the date for the European Council meeting, so that both Thatcher and Schmidt could attend the conference.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.01.1982 Chairman of the Governing Board<\/strong> \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Helmut Schmidt<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When Lilo Milchsack stepped down, a succession of retired German diplomats took over the presidency of Deutsch-Britische Gesellschaft: Karl-G\u00fcnther von Hase, J\u00fcrgen Ruhfus, Herrmann Freiherr von Richthofen, Gebhardt von Moltke and Hans-Henning Horstmann (With the one exception of the liberal peer Lord Watson of Richmond, the Steering Committee has always been chaired by a former British Ambassador to Germany.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There was an interruption of the conference in Cambridge with the consequence that all present British delegates and senior officials had to return to London. Almost all of them were finally able to return to the K\u00f6nigswinter Conference after a debate in the House of Commons and could inform afterwards the remaining German participants about the situation in the Falkland Islands.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1985 K\u00f6nigswinter Conference<\/strong><\/a>
\nThe 35th K\u00f6nigswinter Conference was held from 21\u201323 March 1985 at the Adam Stegerwald Haus. The President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Richard von Weizs\u00e4cker, attented as an honorary guest.<\/p>\n

01.01.1987 Head Office in Bonn<\/strong>
\nThe German-British Society relocated its main office from Dusseldorf to Bonn.<\/p>\n

07.06.1989 The Society\u2019s 40th anniversary (further images)<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/strong>
\nThe German-English Society celebrated its 40th anniversary at the Industrie-Club in Dusseldorf.<\/p>\n

<\/h1>\n

<\/h1>\n

<\/h1>\n

1990s<\/h1>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Margaret Thatcher and Helmut Kohl<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1990: A meeting of Margaret Thatcher and Helmut Kohl took place during the K\u00f6nigswinter Conference. For the Germans this conference was of enormous importance after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the upcoming German reunification.<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.01.1990 Annual Youth Exchange<\/strong>
\nIn the 1990s, as part of the \u201cJugendbr\u00fccke\u201d (Youth Bridge) project, the German-English Society together with the British-German Association (BGA), organised annual exchanges between British and East German high school pupils, who stayed with local families. There was also the\u00a0founding of regional working groups in the new Federal States.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

01.01.1991 K\u00f6nigswinter Conference in Dresden<\/strong>
\nThe K\u00f6nigswinter Conference took place in the East German city of Dresden and it had a great significance for the Germans as it was the first conference on German soil.<\/p>\n

27.05.1992 The death of Lilo Milchsack<\/strong>
\nLilo Milchsack the founder of the German-English Society dies at the age of 88.<\/p>\n

01.10.1992 The Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip<\/strong>
\nDur\"\"<\/a>ing their state visit, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were received by the German-English Society’s governing board, advisory board and sponsors at the British Ambassador\u2019s residence in Bonn.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Dr. J\u00fcrgen Ruhfus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

01.01.1993 Chairman of the Governing Board<\/strong>
\nFrom 1993 until 1998, the Chairman of the Governing Board is Dr. J\u00fcrgen Ruhfus \u2020, Ambassador (ret.)<\/p>\n

01.01.1994 The 40th anniversary of the Society<\/strong>
\nThe German-English Society\u2019s regional Group in Berlin celebrated its 40th anniversary. The chamber orchestra from the Berlin University of the Arts (formerly the Hochschule der K\u00fcnste Berlin) performed at the celebration and was conducted by former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath.<\/p>\n

01.01.1995 The founding of K\u00f6nigswinter Foundation<\/strong>
\nOn the initiative of Dr. Marcus Bierich, the K\u00f6nigswinter Foundation was established.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
1st K\u00f6nigswinter Conference in Berlin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1996: Thanks to the newly founded K\u00f6nigswinter Foundation, the Deutsch-Britische Gesellschaft e.V. received a constant but limited financial support, with contributions from several well-known cooperations and banks.<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.10.1997 K\u00f6nigswinter Conference in Berlin<\/strong>
\nThe K\u00f6nigswinter Conference took place for the first time in Berlin. The German Federal President Roman\u00a0Herzog received the conference participants at the Bellevue Palace.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
YKW 1998 Participants<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

01.01.1998 The Founding of the Young K\u00f6nigswinter Conference <\/strong>
\nThe former participants of the Young K\u00f6nigswinter Conference founded the \u201cYoung K\u00f6nigswinter Alumni\u201d Association. From 1998 until 2003, the Chairman of the Governing Board was Dr. Hermann Frhr. von Richthofen, Ambassador (ret)<\/p>\n

1998 was also the year The German-English Society relocated its main office from Bonn to Berlin.<\/p>\n

09.01.1999 The Society\u2019s 50th anniversary<\/strong>
\n26.4.1999: The official ceremony took place in the Berlin Cathedral 27.4.1999: The opening of the exhibition \u201cViews of Germany\u201d from the Royal Collection in Windsor castle in the Glienicke Palace. Among the guests, the event was attended by the Duke of Kent.<\/p>\n

2000s<\/h1>\n

2000: Tony Blair and Gerhard Schr\u00f6der both took part at the K\u00f6nigswinter conference.<\/strong>
\n2000: Tony Blair und Gerhard Schr\u00f6der nahmen beide an der K\u00f6nigswinter-Konferenz teil.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>01.01.2001 Official ceremony: The 100th Anniversary of the death of Empress Friedrich<\/strong>
\nOfficial ceremony to mark the 100th Anniversary of the death of Empress Friedrich the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and the widow of the German Emperor Friedrich III.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Economic K\u00f6nigswinter 2001<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

16.02.2001 The First Economic K\u00f6nigswinter<\/strong>
\nSince 2001, the Economic K\u00f6nigswinter Conference has alternated annually between Germany and the United Kingdom. While the 21st conference was held in London in 2023, earlier UK meetings have also taken place at Ditchley Park.<\/p>\n

At the annual General Meeting, it was decided to rename the Deutsch-Englische Gesellschaft (German-English Society) into the Deutsch-Britische Gesellschaft (German-British Society).<\/p>\n

18.03.2002 Plaque unveiling<\/strong>
\nA plaque in honour of Lilo Milchsack the founder of the society is unveiled at the Carsch-Haus in Dusseldorf. It is here, in the former English cultural centre \u201cdie Br\u00fccker \u201c (the bridge), where the society held its events and lectures until the 1970s.<\/p>\n

01.01.2003 \"\"<\/a>Gebhardt von Moltke<\/strong>
\nFrom 2003 until 2013, the Chairman of the Governing Board is Gebhardt von Moltke, Ambassador (ret.)<\/p>\n

01.11.2004 State visit<\/strong>
\nThe Governing Board and the Advisory Board are invited to attend a concert in the Berlin Philharmonic, as part of Her Majesty\u2019s Queen Elizabeth II State Visit to Germany<\/p>\n

01.01.2009 The Society\u2019s 60th anniversary<\/strong>
\nThe 60th anniversary of the German British\/English society is celebrated in Dusseldorf.<\/p>\n

2010s<\/h1>\n

2011: the Defence and Security K\u00f6nigswinter Conference was established, in which members of the British and German security community and the military met.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

01.01.2013-2021 Hans-Henning Horstmann<\/strong>
\nFrom 2013 until 2021, the Chairman of the Governing Board is Hans-Henning Horstmann, Ambassador (ret)<\/p>\n

2013: David Cameron announced that he would hold a referendum on membership of the EU. Following this, the disagreement over Europe widened. This was followed by an increasingly divisive split within the British delegations, which led to new momentum in Britain’s European policy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

2014, the MP Douglas Carswell, representative of the Eurosceptic side, caused a public stir after participating in the K\u00f6nigswinter conference with the resignation of the Tory whip. His experience in the K\u00f6nigswinter had convinced him to reorientate and join the UKIP.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

23.06.2016 The EU Referendum <\/strong>
\nIn a nationwide referendum, British voters voted by 51.9% to 48.1% in favour of leaving the European Union. The result marked a turning point in UK\u2013EU relations and initiated the Brexit process.<\/p>\n

29.03.2017 Theresa May triggers Article 50 EUV<\/strong>
\nAfter 44 years of membership in the European Union, the British government formally notified the European Council in Brussels on 29 March 2017 of the United Kingdom\u2019s intention to leave the Union. This activated Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union and thereby initiated the withdrawal process.<\/p>\n

2017-2019: The last three conferences that followed the British vote of EU membership have shown how great the scale of the challenges Brexit will face for the Anglo-German relationship, in case it actually comes to a Brexit.<\/strong><\/p>\n

2020s<\/h1>\n

31 January 2020: Britain leaves the EU (Brexit)<\/strong>
\nThe United Kingdom officially left the European Union after 47 years of membership, ending decades of political and economic integration with the bloc.<\/p>\n

31 May 2021: Thomas Matussek, Ambassador (ret.) is elected as Chairman of the Governing Board <\/strong>
\nThomas Matussek, a retired German ambassador and experienced diplomat, was elected Chairman of the Governing Board. In this role, he became responsible for overseeing the organization’s strategic direction, governance, and long-term development.<\/p>\n

8 September 2022: Death of Queen Elizabeth<\/strong>
\nQueen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle, ending her 70-year reign as Britain’s longest-serving monarch. She was succeeded by her son, King Charles III.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>March 2023: State Visit of King Charles III to Germany<\/strong>
\nKing Charles III made his first state visit to Germany as monarch, reinforcing UK\u2013German relations in the post-Brexit context and focusing on diplomatic reconciliation, environmental sustainability, and closer bilateral cooperation.<\/p>\n

6 May 2023: Coronation of King Charles III<\/strong>
\nKing Charles III was officially crowned in Westminster Abbey, marking the ceremonial beginning of his reign as monarch of the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n

19 November 2024: 75th Anniversary of the German-British Society<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The German-British Society celebrated its 75th anniversary with a formal ceremony at the W\u00fcrth House in Berlin-Schwanenwerder. The event honoured the Society\u2019s long history of promoting dialogue, friendship, and cooperation between Germany and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n

30th June 2025: New Chairwoman of the Governing Board <\/strong>
\nAnne Ruth Herkes was elected as the new Chairwoman of the Governing Board, with John Kampfner appointed as Vice Chair.<\/p>\n

17 July 2025 \u2013 Signing of the Kensington Treaty:<\/a><\/strong>
\nThe United Kingdom and Germany signed the Kensington Treaty in London, creating the first major bilateral friendship treaty between the two countries. It strengthened cooperation in defence, security, trade, migration, science, education, and culture, while improving economic ties and joint military planning. The treaty was significant because it marked a new phase in UK\u2013Germany relations after Brexit, demonstrating both countries’ commitment to working together to address shared challenges such as European security, economic growth, and international stability.<\/p>\n

December 2025: Visit of the German Federal President to the United Kingdom<\/strong>
\nThe German Federal President paid an official visit to the United Kingdom, aimed at strengthening bilateral relations and advancing political cooperation in the post-Brexit context.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1940s 23.08.1946 The founding of the States of Gr\u00fcndung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hannover und Schleswig-Holstein The British military government dissolved the former Prussian provinces and\u2026 Weiterlesen<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-11697","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P9sXiX-32F","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/11697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11697"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/11697\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11863,"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/11697\/revisions\/11863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debrige.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}