The famous Brandenburg Gate

Turn around once more to face Brandenburg Gate.

For those interested in finding out a bit more about the history of this famous Gate, you will not be disappointed. It is one of Berlin’s symbols as well as a symbol of the German reunification. You may well have picked up a few German euros since you arrived- have a look at the centime coin and you will see that the Gate is pictured on the back. This shows just how important the gate is for German people. We are all of course familiar with the images shown throughout the world of the events of the 22 December 1989, and the emotional reuniting of the people of East and West Berlin under this arch. Less joyful but equally as familiar were the pictures of Adolph Hitler’s troops parading between the columns.

When looking at the Gate, it will probably remind you of a large arch such as the Arc de Triomphe in Paris or a similar one in Rome. It is a majestic building, whose great tall columns under the antique frieze command instant respect. And yet, this building was never built with the purpose of opening onto a grand avenue for military parades- it simply marked the boundaries of old Berlin and sealed the Unter den Linden Avenue, which had become a sort of Royal passageway. This gate used to be Berlin’s tollgate. The central passage was reserved for Royal family horse-drawn carriages, whereas one pavilion was taken up by the Guard and the other by customs officers. This is to remind us that this Gate was originally a city gate, and not a monument to the glory of the nation! This is why the rest of the buildings were joined on to it, with the exception of the Parisian-style Arc de Triomphe that stands splendidly by itself and thus emphasises the achievements of the Nation’s armies.

Let’s get back to its origins. It was inaugurated in 1792, and built by the architect Carl Gotthard Langhans, who created here one of Germany’s first neo-classical buildings.

Look at the Doric columns, which are characterised by the lack of crepidoma, and the use of large fluting and a very simple capital. The overall effect makes you think of the Acropolis in Athens.

Above the columns, too, is a series of small images in low relief, representing fights between centaurs and naked men.

The gate is topped with a quadriga, a chariot drawn by four horses, again inspired by classic Antiquity. If you look up you will be able to admire the frieze on the ledge: you may be able to make out figures of women holding olive branches and garlands of flowers. One of the women is winged, and symbolises Victory. The man holding the club is of course Hercules. The entire arrangement is symbolic of triumph and the victory of arts, justice and weapons.

This is a typical end of 18th century monument. It is heavily influenced by Greek and Roman Antiquity, at the request of the man who commissioned it, King Friedrich Wilhelm II. King Friedrich Wilhelm II succeeded his uncle, Friedrich II, nicknamed Old Fritz. Up until his death, Old Fritz remained loyal to Rococo, a style which was characterised by flourishes and embellishments that you will see at the end of the road and which went completely out of fashion by the 1760s. Friedrich Wilhelm II, on the other hand, preferred a revival of Prussian architecture.

A quick word about the powerful copper quadriga on which a victorious toga-clad Goddess stands with a crown of bay leaves, holding a long pole with an iron cross.

This monument has had a colourful history. When Napoleon I invaded the city in 1805, the huge sculpture was sent to Paris as a spoil of war. In 1814, after Napoleon’s downfall, the quadriga was brought triumphantly back to Berlin and given pride of place on Unter den Linden. As the original work had been destroyed, the East and West Berlin authorities agreed to make a copy after World War II, which is the one you see before you, dominating the Gate. West Berlin paid for the monument, but East Berlin insisted it be placed here (as Brandenburg Gate was in the East). The communist authorities also refused the pole with the Prussian wing and cross. These details were added after 1990.