BACHEM, JULIUS. — Lawyer, politician, and publicist, born on 2 July 1845 in Mülheim on the Ruhr, died on 22 January 1918 in Cologne. He was one of the principal editors of the *Kölnische Blätter*, later the *Kölnische Volkszeitung*. A friend and pupil of Windthorst, Bachem was one of the leading figures of the Centre Party, of which he was himself a representative in the Prussian Chamber until 1890. His historical significance lies in his efforts to clarify the political character of the Centre Party. During the so-called *Kulturkampf* unleashed by Bismarck, and after its conclusion, he opposed the prevailing opinion that the Centre Party’s purpose was to defend the Church, and he made clear that, like all authentic political parties, its goal was the common good of the state in its broadest sense. However, it distinguished itself from others in that, in choosing the means to achieve that end, it followed as its supreme norm the Catholic conception of the world and of humanity. Thus, any citizen, even if not Catholic, could join this party provided they accepted its programme. On these foundations, Bachem devoted all his efforts to developing and spreading the living force of Catholicism in every sphere of life, seeking to establish fruitful and practical collaboration between Catholics and non-Catholics.
Against the introduction of Social Democracy among the German working masses, he supported Christian-national trade unions. He defended Catholic schools, promoted the press (*Kölnische Volkszeitung*, *Augustinusverein*), and the scientific activity of Catholics (*Staatslexikon*, the juridical and sociological section of the Görres Society), and energetically demanded parity for Catholics and Protestants in all branches of public administration and education.
Given the confessional division of Germany, one cannot but approve Bachem’s work and the principles he followed, defending him even against accusations from Catholic circles advocating radical “integralism” and excessive zeal in anti-modernism, especially after the publication of the article “We Must Leave the Tower” in the *Historisch-politische Blätter* in 1906. It is true that the direction taken by Bachem contributed to making German Catholics less attentive than they should have been to the essential defects of the empire founded by Bismarck, while on the other hand it showed a tendency to underestimate the open and cold opposition that the Church and Catholicism encountered in Germany.