Brandenburg Gate

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The Brandenburg Gate

The Brandenburg Gate (German: Brandenburger Tor) is a former city gate and the symbol of Berlin, Germany. It is located between the Pariser Platz and the Platz des 18. März and is the only remaining gate of a series through which one formerly entered Berlin. One block to its north lies the Reichstag. It constitutes the monumental termination of Unter den Linden, the renowned boulevard of Lime trees which led directly to the royal residence. It was commissioned by Friedrich Wilhelm II as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791.

1 Design & History
2 Location
3 Photo gallery
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Design & History

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The Brandenburg Gate consists of twelve Roman Doric columns, six on each side. This allows for five roadways, although originally ordinary citizens were only allowed to use the outer two. Above the gate is the Quadriga, consisting of the goddess of peace, driving a four-horse chariot in triumph. The gate stands 26 m (65 ft) high, 65.5 m (213 ft) wide and 11 m (36 ft) thick.

The design of the gate was based on the Propylea, the gateway to the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. Berlin had a long history of classicism: first classicist Baroque and then a neo-Palladian, but this was the first Greek revival neo-classical structure in Berlin, which would become the Spreeathen ("Athens on the River Spree") by the 1830s, shaped by the severe neoclassicism of architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel. The Quadriga on the top was made by Johann Gottfried Schadow.

Napoleon in Berlin

While the main design of the Brandenburg Gate has remained the same since it was completed, the gate has played varying roles in Germany's history. First, Napoleon took the Quadriga to Paris in 1806 after conquering Berlin. When it returned to Berlin in 1814, the statue exchanged her olive wreath for the Iron Cross and became the goddess of victory.

When the Nazis rose to power, they used the gate to symbolize their power. The only structure left standing in the ruins of Pariser Platz in 1945, apart from the ruined Academy of Fine Arts, the gate was restored by the East Berlin and West Berlin governments. However, in 1961, the gate was closed when the Berlin Wall was built.

In 1963 U.S. President John F. Kennedy visited the Brandenburg Gate for his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech. The Soviets hung large banners across it so he could not see the East Berlin side. "The German question will remain open as long as the Brandenburg Gate is closed" was how the Mayor of West Berlin, Richard von Weizsäcker, described the situation in the early 1980s. On June 12, 1987 U.S. President Ronald Reagan delivered a speech ("Tear down this wall") to the people of West Berlin at the Brandenburg Gate, yet it was also audible on the East Berlin side of the Wall.

Finally, when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the gate symbolized freedom and the unity of the city. It re-opened on 22 December 1989 when the West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl walked through to be greeted by the East German Prime Minister, Hans Modrow.

On July 12, 1994 U.S. President Bill Clinton addressed a speech to the people of Berlin at the Brandenburg Gate talking mainly about peace in post-Cold War Europe.

On December 21, 2000 workers began to once again refurbish the Brandenburg Gate, this time using lasers to clean off soot and grit. More than 1,000 pieces of stone were also replaced. Estimated cost: 3,000,000 USD in private funding.

There is some local controversy in Berlin over the fact that there is a Starbucks within a few yards of the gate. It is seen as a corporate intrusion upon a national treasure.

[edit] Location

Street map of the Brandenburg Gate's location (GlobalGuide)

[edit] Photo gallery

Napoleon in Berlin.		The Brandenburg Gate in 1871	The brandenburg gate in 1937 Nazi Germany.
Soldier of the Polish Army during the Battle of Berlin	The Brandenburg Gate on the day construction of the Berlin Wall began, August 13th 1961	The Brandenburg Gate in 1982 viewed from the East Berlin side. Behind the gate is the Berlin Wall and in the foreground is the rail that was accessible from East Berlin.	Ronald Reagan giving a speech on June 12, 1987
Germans celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall near the Brandenburg Gate	The Brandenburg Gate	The Quadriga atop the Brandenbrug Gate (August 2003)	The Brandenburg Gate appears on the obverse of the 50, 20 and 10 cent German euro coins
The Brandenburg Gate also appeared on the reverse of the last series of the Deutsche Mark banknotes	Brandenburg Gate at night, facing west. The Tiergarten in background