Léopold Sédar Senghor (1906 - 2001) was not only the first president of independent Senegal but also a symbolic figure of the dialogue of cultures after the end of colonialism. In 1968, he was awarded the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade for this. His vision of a postcolonial modernity aimed to break the monopoly of the West and focused on understanding. Hans Belting and Andrea Buddensieg undertake the first comprehensive tribute to Senghor and his life's work in the German language. As a young man, Senghor went to Paris, where he quickly gained recognition as a poet and the admiration of Jean-Paul Sartre. In 1945, he became a member of the French National Assembly and later a member of the Council of Europe, where he advocated as passionately as unsuccessfully for a united Europe that included Africa. His vision of a truly universal civilization.