The Göttinger Tageblatt has reported on the event "Max Planck erinnert sich," which commemorated the founding of the Max Planck Society 70 years ago. At the historic founding site, today the cafeteria of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Bunsenstraße, PD Dr. Jaromir Balcar from the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin impressively stated that this foundation was anything but compelling. Views on how to organize non-university research after the Second World War in Germany differed widely in the various occupation zones. Only a few lucky coincidences and the determined commitment of the British set the course for today's Max Planck Society.