HISTORIC BUILDINGS
1.Brandenburger Tor
More than a mere symbol, the Brandenburg Gate is synonymous with Berlin (for further details see Brandenburger Tor).
2.Schloss Charlottenburg
This palace boasts Baroque and Rococo splendours and a beautiful park, making it one of the most attractive in Germany (for further details see Schloss Charlottenburg).
Schloss Charlottenburg
3.Schloss Bellevue
Spreeweg 1 • Not open to the public • www.bundespraesident.de/EN/ Built by Philipp Daniel Boumann in 1785–90, this was the residence of the Hohenzollerns until 1861. Since 1994 the stately building with its Neo-Classical façade has been the official residence of the President of the Federal Republic. The modern, egg-shaped Presidential Offices stand next to the old palace.
4.Reichstag
The seat of the Deutscher Bundestag, the German parliament, with its spectacular cupola, is a magnet for visitors (for further details see Reichstag).
5.Berliner Rathaus
Rathausstraße 15 • 8am–6pm daily Berlin’s Town Hall, also known as “Red Town Hall” because of the red bricks from Brandenburg province with which it is built, harks back to the proud days when Berlin became the capital of the new Empire. Built in 1861–9 according to designs by Hermann Friedrich Waesemann, the town hall was one of Germany’s largest and most magnificent buildings, built to promote the splendour of Berlin. The structure was modelled on Italian Renaissance palaces, and the tower is reminiscent of Laon cathedral in France. The exterior was decorated with Die Steinerne Chronik (the stone chronicle) in 1879, depicting scenes from the city’s history (for further details see Berliner Rathaus).
6.Konzerthaus
Gendarmenmarkt 2 • 030 203 092 101 • Main hall Apr–Oct: 11am–6pm; tours 3:30pm Mon–Fri, 1pm Sun • en.konzerthaus.de The Concert Hall, one of Karl Friedrich Schinkel’s masterpieces, was formerly known as the Schauspielhaus (theatre). The building has a portico with Ionic columns and statues of allegorical and historical personages, some riding lions and panthers, as well as deities, muses and bacchants.
The Neo-Classical exterior of the Konzerthaus
7.Hackesche Höfe
Rosenthaler Str. 40–41 This complex of 19th-century buildings has eight interlinked courtyards, some of which are decorated in Jugendstil style, originally by August Endell. In the early 1990s the complex was completely renovated. The first courtyard is particularly attractive: coloured glazed tiles with geometric patterns decorate the house from the foundations up to the guttering. In the last courtyard, trees are grouped around an idyllic well. The Hackesche Höfe is one of Berlin’s most popular hotspots; restaurants, cafés, a cinema and the Chamäleon musical theatre and variety show attract visitors from afar.
8.Siegessäule
The Victory Column in Tiergarten is topped by the statue of Victoria. Designed by Heinrich Strack after Prussia’s victory in the Danish-Prussian War of 1864, it was refurbished in 2010 (for further details see Siegessäule).
Siegessäule
9.Altes Museum and Lustgarten
The façade of the Old Museum, possibly one of the most attractive Neo-Classical museum buildings in Europe, is remarkable for the 18 Ionic columns supporting a portico. Built in 1830 to Karl Friedrich Schinkel’s design, it was at the time one of the first buildings to be created specifically as a museum. Originally it was to house the royal collection of paintings; today it is home to a collection of antiquities. In front of the museum is a garden designed by Peter Joseph Lenné. Conceived as the king’s herb garden, today it is decorated with a 70-ton granite bowl by Gottlieb Christian Cantian, and a fountain (for further details see Altes Museum and Lustgarten).
10.Zeughaus
Designed by J A Nering as the first Berlin Baroque building, the former Royal Prussian Arsenal is now the Deutsches Historisches Museum, with a modern addition by I M Pei.
