Brandenburg Gate

One of the best known landmarks in Germany, and one which we knew we had to visit, the Brandenburg Gate was built on the site of a former city gate at the start of the road between Berlin and Brandenburg.

Following the Thirty Years War (1618 to 1648), Berlin was just a small walled city with a star-shaped fort. However, the Gate (built between 1788 and 1791) was not part of this old Berlin fortress. Rather, it was one of eighteen gates in the “Customs Wall”, used to levy taxes on imports and exports. Commissioned by Frederick William II of Prussia, the Brandenburg Gate replaced an older single guardhouse. Consisting of twelve Doric columns (six on each side), it created five passageways. Only the Royal Family could use the center archway, while citizens were allowed to use the two outermost passages on either side. Atop the gate was erected a “Quadriga” - a chariot drawn by four horses and driven by the goddess Victoria (goddess of victory).

Napoleon was the first to use the gate for a triumphant procession in 1806, following his defeat of the Prussians. When the Nazis rose to power, they used the gate as a symbol of their party. Although damaged by bullets and nearby explosions, the gate survived World War II. Vehicles and pedestrians could easily pass through the gate until the Berlin Wall was erected in 1961. After the “Revolution of 1989” and the dismantling of the Berlin Wall, the Gate became a symbol of freedom and “...a desire to unify the city.”

Privately refurbished in 2000 for the twelfth anniversary of reunification of Berlin, the Gate is now closed to vehicle passage, as the area of the “Pariser Platz” (the square in front of the Gate) is now a pedestrian zone. Interestingly (at least to us), today, the Gate is straddled by the U.S. Embassy on one side and the French Embassy on the opposite side.

Once part of the old “Customs Wall” at the start of the road between Berlin and Brandenburg, the Brandenburg Gate today is one of the most recognizable symbols for the city of Berlin. Once the Gate had been completed in 1791, only members of the Royal Family could use the center archway. All others used the side passageways.

Designed by Johann Gottfried Schadow in 1793, the “Quadriga” (a four-horse drawn chariot driven by Victoria (goddess of Victory) on top of the Brandenburg Gate, was stolen by Napoleon in 1806 and taken to Paris. It was returned to Berlin eight years later.

Archival photo showing damage done to the area around the Gate during World War II. While receiving some damage itself, The Gate survived the War.

Now closed to vehicular traffic, the Pariser Platz in front of the Gate is designated as a pedestrian zone.

Publicity photo (taken from atop the French Embassy) showing the American Embassy across the way.

Straddling the Brandenburg Gate, opposite the American Embassy, is the French Embassy.

”Wir Sind Berliner” (“We are Berliners”) - at least for the day. Notice the white fencing across the front of the Gate. The passageways were closed off temporarily because there was a huge telethon screen on the far side to show the World Cup soccer matches going on at the time (soccer is huge in Europe).