History
Founded in the 13th century, Berlin has had an eventful history. Excavations from 2008 suggest that the city may be even older than was previously assumed: state archaeologists have discovered an oak beam that probably dates back to 1183.
Almost no other metropolis has experienced such frequent, radical change transforming the face of the city. Although Berlin saw steady growth in its importance, dazzling epochs alternated with darker eras. Nevertheless, the formerly divided city has succeeded in becoming a vibrant metropolis in the heart of Europe.
The medieval trading center
The founding of Cölln and Berlin and membership in the Hanseatic League more »
The electors’ residence
The Hohenzollerns rule Brandenburg and the Reformation reaches Berlin more »
The royal capital
Friedrich I is crowned the Prussian king/Berlin becomes a center of the Enlightenment more »
The imperial capital
Berlin is the political heart of the German Reich more »
The cosmopolitan city of the Weimar Republic
Between the cultural heyday of the Golden Twenties and the city’s decline more »
Berlin in the National Socialist era
Hitler’s rise to power, anti-Jewish pogroms, and the years leading up to another World War more »
Berlin after 1945
A blockade and construction of the Wall follow the city’s division into sectors more »
The fall of the Wall and reunification
The people force the government to open the borders more »
The new Berlin
A construction boom and the move of Germany’s parliament and government more »
