In the decades following 1955, Theodor Eschenburg gained major recognition as a "guardian of institutions" and a "teacher of democracy." However, since 2011 his activities during the Third Reich have undergone great criticism, together with his understanding of democracy before 1933 and after 1945. For the first time, Udo Wengst tries to examine Eschenburg's life as a whole, and to interpret it based on extensive new source materials.