A speech on the Practical Philosophy of the Chinese (1721): To the question of Chr. Wolff's banishment from Halle

The article concerns a significant for the early Enlightenment in Germany event of Chr. Wolff's banishment from Halle, which was connected with the accusation of atheism and freethinking against the philosopher. Joachim Lange, which has succeed Wolff in office of a rector of the University Halle, played not an unimportant role in the process. And a stumblingblock was Wolff's Speech on the Practical Philosophy of Chinese which has been hold by him on the occasion of Lange's inauguration. An analyze of the text of the Speech gives us the possibility to understand better some aspects of the philosophy of Wolff himself and the features of the German Enlightenment as a whole, and to answer the question whether we have grounds to hold Wolff for an atheist following here pietists. At the same time Wolff's banishment from Halle as well as his return to Halle after Frederick II has acceded to the throne were both truly significant for the thinkers of that epoch. And it is irrespective of degree of justification of the accusations against him. Just this event has made Wolff for the symbol of fight between the forces of Enlightenment against the forces of church reaction which has been crowned with triumphal victory of the firsts over the seconds. © 2017 Russian Academy of Sciences.