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Historic Buildings in Berlin - Berlin Hotels .com

Berlin is rich with history. Despite its transformation since the fall of the Berlin Wall into an international metropolis on par with Paris and London, adorned with modern attractions from the striking Sony Center at Potsdamer Platz to the towering Fernsehturm at Alexanderplatz, this incredible capitol is perhaps best know of its history and architecture that dates from the ear of the Kingdom of Prussia to the Third Reich.

Commissioned by Friedrich Wilhelm II as a symbol of peace, and later incorporated into the Berlin Wall at the end of Unter den Linden, the Brandenburg Gate remains unchanged since its construction in 1791.

Not far away, the Reichstag has been reconstructed with an enormous glass and metal dome. Thousands of visitors spiral up to the top of this capitol building for a panoramic view of central Berlin. The Siegessaeule (Victory Column), built to commemorate Prussia's victories, once stood in front of the Reichstag. Now situated on Strasse des 17. Juni, halfway between the Brandenburg Gate and Ernst-Reuter-Platz, this monument marks the crossroads of the annual Love Parade festival.

Also known for its dome, the Berliner Dom looks out over the Lustgarten, the royal park of the former palace. But the largest surviving historical palace in the city is Schloss Charlottenburg, where magnificent rooms, art collections, and gardens boast 300 years of history.

Of course, even Charlottenburg pales in age next to the Spandau Citadel, a fortress designed to protect sixteenth century Spandau from the threat of Berlin. The main towers are even older, dating back to the twelfth century.