Destinations / The best places to visit in Berlin, Germany / Brandenburg Gate

  Brandenburg Gate is a monumental gate built in the 18th century as a symbol of peace. During the Cold War, as the gate was located right on the border of East and West, it became a symbol of a divided city. With the fall of the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate became a symbol of reunified Berlin. The desolated area of Pariser Platz of the Cold War has now been completely renovated and has regained much of the past grandeur it had in the 19th century. The Brandenburg Gate is located at the end of the famous Berlin boulevard, Unter den Linden. In the past, the gate was part of the Berlin Wall and was the main gateway city. This is the only gate left of the former wall.

 

  The magnificent monument was designed by Carl Gotthard and commissioned by Emperor Wilhelm II. The project of the gate that measures 65 meters in width and 28 meters in height is based on Propylaea gate of the Acropolis in Athens. The Brandenburg Gate was built between 1778 and 1781, taking the place of another old gate. Decorations include bas-reliefs representing scenes from Greek mythology and they took four more years to be fully completed.

 

  Victory chariot drawn by four horses which is on the Brandenburg Gate was made in 1793 by Johann Gottfried Schadow. The bronze chariot is led by the goddess of peace. Initially, the Brandenburg Gate was a symbol of peace. In 1806, during the French occupation, Napoleon ordered that the chariot to be brought to Paris. After the Waterloo Battle, the chariot was brought back to Berlin, in a triumphal framework, becoming a symbol of victory. Also at that time, the piazza near the gate was called Pariser Platz and the statue of the chariot is called Victoria today, in the honour of the Roman goddess with the same name.

 

  Brandenburg Gate, which until the World War II has always been a symbol of Prussian militarism, was severely damaged during the war. After the division of Berlin, Brandenburg Gate has found itself on the border between East Berlin and the West, on the Russian sector. The gate was restored in 1958 by Eastern Berlin, while Westerm Berlin has funded the reconstruction of Victoria statue.

 

  After building the Berlin Wall in 1961, the market near the Brandenburg Gate, Pariser Platz has become a desolate place. Gate symbolized Germany's division. On Wall fell in 1989, people gathered near the Brandenburg Gate was reopened to enjoy Berlin and German reunification. Monument was again renovated in 2001 and reopened on October 3, 2002.

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