‘Adenauer — Saar. Ja Bonn, ma mine, schönen Dank!’ On 2 November 1955, Spanish-born cartoonist César illustrates the delight of Chancellor Adenauer at the return of the Saar to Federal Germany. In the referendum held on 23 October 1955, 67.7 % of Saar voters rejected the European status proposed by the Paris Agreements, and France had to accept the idea of the Saar being returned to West Germany. The Saar, one of Europe’s richest, most productive mining regions, had been occupied by France as part of Germany’s war reparations.