Alfred Grosser made understanding between Germany and France his life’s work. Now he died at the age of 99.
The specialist for German-French issues Alfred Grosser is dead. The political scientist and journalist died in Paris at the age of 99, as his son Pierre Grosser announced on Thursday. Alfred Grosser was one of the intellectual pioneers of the Franco-German friendship treaty known as the Élysée Treaty.
Grosser has written numerous books in which he helped the Germans understand the French – and, conversely, explained the Germans to the French. He received many awards for his role as a mediator, including the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, the Grand Cross of Merit with Star and Shoulder Ribbon, and the French Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor.
Grosser emigrated in 1933
Grosser was born on February 1, 1925 in Frankfurt am Main. In 1933 he emigrated to France with his family of Jewish origins, and four years later he took on French citizenship. He later converted to Catholicism.
The German-French journalist studied political science and German in Paris. From 1955 he taught at the renowned Institut d’études politiques de Paris and wrote political columns for numerous newspapers. He once said about his relationship with Germany and France: He belongs in France, he supports Germany from outside.
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