Locations of events.

René Descartes wanted to develop nothing less than ‘a universal method for searching for truth’. His ideas were revolutionary – and shocking. His key philosophical statements are all condensed in this Latin edition from 1685.

Some say that the world would be better without evil. Others say that, if there really were a God, evil couldn’t exist in the world. Leibniz says: God does exist, and we live in the best of all possible worlds. Don’t agree? Just read on...

“The North Star of architecture”, that is how Johann Wolfgang von Goethe called the master builder Palladio. Although he created most of his works in the 16th century, it was not until much later that Palladio turned into a worldwide success. He became a role model for all those who wanted to create democratic architecture.

His life was a battle: a soldier against the enemy, a lawyer against an unjust state, an author against censorship. Johann Gottfried Seume is one of the most famous authors of the German Enlightenment. And he did not mince words in his books.

With its German and French past, Alsace has an exciting history. Johann Daniel Schoepflin, a clever man with a Europe-wide reputation, already thought so, too. In the middle of the 18th century he wrote a comprehensive work about the history of Alsace, which is still quoted today.