British Parliament Hears W. German President

West German President Richard von Weizsaecker on Wednesday became the first German head of state to address Britain’s Parliament and told its members, “We have not forgotten the lessons of the past.”

The speech was the keynote address of a four-day state visit to Britain that began Tuesday on the 70th anniversary of the World War I Battle of the Somme, where the Allies lost 600,000 men and the Germans 650,000 in extensive fighting along the French river that flows into the English Channel.

Von Weizsaecker appealed for European unity and stressed the importance of relations with the United States in his address to the legislators gathered in the Royal Gallery of the Westminster Parliament--a hall adorned with the portraits of English kings and queens and paintings of the battles of Waterloo and Trafalgar.

“Forty-five years ago, parts of this venerable building, too, were destroyed by bombs,” he said in reference to World War II German air raids on London.

“Today, the allies and enemies of that era are joined together in the European Community and the Atlantic Alliance,” he said in flawless English.

“We have not forgotten the lessons of the past,” said Von Weizsaecker, adding that detente could fail unless those on both sides of the Atlantic remained committed to the U.S.-European relationship.

Vital Contribution

“With its defense contribution, the United States is protecting itself and us Europeans. Neither side can dispense with that contribution,” he said.

But Von Weizsaecker said that West Europeans had to consolidate their unity. “The nations of Europe will only have a history of their own in keeping with their (national, democratic) traditions if they proceed together.”

Von Weizsaecker, 66, a graduate of Oxford University, will visit Wales today and later receive Queen Elizabeth II at a banquet in the West German Embassy. He was the guest of honor Tuesday night at a Buckingham Palace state banquet.

Queen to Visit Berlin

He said Prince Charles and Princess Diana have accepted an invitation to visit West Germany next year, and Buckingham Palace announced Wednesday that the queen will visit West Berlin next May.

Diplomats said the exchange of visits symbolizes the solid foundations established between Britain and West Germany since World War II.

“Our relations with West Germany are probably better now than they have ever been,” said a British Foreign Office spokeswoman.