The Potsdam City Palace, back to life

The southern part of the Alter Markt looks empty, with only the reconstructed Fortunaportal standing alone where one of the greatest Prussian palaces once stood. I'm talking about the Stadtschloss in Potsdam.

The Potsdam City Palace was built in the 17th century for Margrave Frederick William of Brandenburg, called "The Great Elector". On the picture below, you can see how the palace looked one year after the coronation of Frederick I as King in Prussia. It soon became the winter residence of the Hohenzollern monarchs.

1720

Frederick II of Prussia had the palace rebuilt by Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff. The baroque became roroco, the so-called Frederician Rococo - the façades were modified, two colonnades were added, and a staircase - one of Knobelsdorff's best known works - was built in the interior. It made a unique ensemble in the Alter Markt, along with the Nikolaikirche by Schinkel and the baroque Altes Rathaus. The Stadtschloß was used as a royal residence until the fall of the German Monarchy in 1918.

As a museum, photo taken in the 1920s.

On April 14, 1945, just two weeks before the fall of Berlin, Potsdam was bombed by RAF. The attack left scars in the Alter Markt – the destroyed dome of the Nikolaikirche, and the burnt-out palace. However, it could have been restored.

But as it was typical in the DDR, the remains of the Stadtschloß were blown up in 1950, being a “symbol of Prussian militarism” on communist eyes. Other buildings in Potsdam, including the Garrison Church and the Royal Teather, suffered a similar fate. The only existing remains are some pillars from the southern wing, the Stables (now Filmmuseum Potsdam) and part of one of the Knobelsdorff colonnades, which is now in the nearby Lustgarten.

Between 2000 and 2002, the Fortuna Gate was rebuilt on its historical position - and the Palace itself is going to be rebuilt as the seat of the Landtag of Brandenburg. While the interior will be a modern one, the facades and some inner parts of historical significance (such as the Knobelsdorff staircase) are to be rebuilt following the original layout.

Back to Potsdam

And today I uploaded two more models, this time in Potsdam, core city of Brandenburg-Prussia, and its succesor state, the Kingdom of Prussia.

First, the Jägertor.

Built in 1733, the Jägertor ("Hunter's Tor") was part of the city wall that protected Potsdam by the 18th century. It was located at the northern section of the wall, where now a promenade is on its place. The section connected the Jägertor with the Nauener Tor to the East, and the (small) Brandenburg Gate to the West.

A scupture is placed at the top of the gate, showing three dogs hunting a deer as part of the typical hunting season scene.

And now, let's go with the Französische Kirche.

The French Church of Potsdam was built between 1752 and 1753 as a result of the Edict of Potsdam from about 70 years earlier. The religious freedom that the Kingdom offered to foreigners attracted a number of French Huguenots, expelled from their land. The Church was one of the last works by Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff, built by order of Frederick the Great and based in the Pantheon in Rome.

Despite several renovations and changes, the church was lucky enough to escape WWII untouched, as you can see above. Currently the Französische Kirche is the oldest church in Potsdam (the Garrison Church, built between 1730 and 1735, was demolished by the Communist regime in 1968).

Mauerfall.

21 years ago, in the afternoon of November 9, 1989, Gunter Schabowski announced the opening of all the border crossings between West and East Germany. For this occassion, I have uploaded two new models, both related to this history.

I will start with the Weinhaus Huth.

Photograph from 1912.

Located in Alte Potsdamer Straße 5 / Linkstraße 45, the Haus Huth opened in 1912 as home to the wine restaurant and cellar of William Huth, a wine merchant whose second great-grandfather was Wine Cellar Master to Frederick the Great. This building stood in the place of another building, owned by the Willy's father, Friedrich Christian Huth. The new building was constructed with a steel skeleton to resist the wine storage space, which was located in the upper floor. This feature allowed the building to remain almost unscathed 33 years later, after the attack carried by USAF in February 1945. The restaurant was reopened in June of the same year.


During the years of the Berlin Wall, that section of Potsdamer Straße was closed to car traffic - the Wall was at one end and in the other one was the construction site for the Staatsbibliothek. After the German inner border came down, the building was restored. It's now in the center of the Daimler-Chrysler complex.

The second model is, of course, the Brandenburg Gate.

Before 1788, this gate, part of the Berlin excise wall (Gr. Akzisemauer), consisted in two simple guardhouses dating from circa 1735.


The current structure was built between 1788 and 1791 by architect Carl Gotthart Langhans and the Quadriga sculpted by J. G. Schadow. Several events in German history have been related directly to the Gate. Napoleon I of France took the sculpture in 1906 after the Prussian defeat at Jena. The Quadriga was retrieved from Paris in 1914 and the Iron Cross was added, turning it into a symbol of Victory. The Brandenburg Gate was also place for some celebrations during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71.

The Brandenburg Gate was also the beggining of the great Unter den Linden boulevard, that led to the Stadtschloss and city centre.

View from Siegessäule

The Brandenburger Tor was one of the few remaining buildings standing in Pariser Platz after WW2, (the other being the Academy of Fine Arts and the Adlon Hotel). Following the construction of the Berlin Wall, the Gate was used as a border crossing only for West Berliners, opening in August 13, 1961 - although it was closed in the next day. The crossing - the Gate - was reopened in December 1989.

During the Fall of the Wall - November 9, 1989

It's now, at the same time, the only remaining building from prewar Parisier Platz, and the only remaining gate from both city walls (Hallesches Tor was destroyed in WW2, the war damaged Potsdamer Tor was demolished in the 1950; part of the Oranienburger Tor can be found outside the Borsig-Werke).

Enjoy.

Unter den Linden 1 - 4

In this weekend I have uploaded two new models to the Warehouse, located both on the Unter den Linden boulevard in Mitte.

Lets start with the Alte Kommandantur.

The Kommandantenhaus was originally a baroque residential building dating back from 1653, designed by architect Johann Gregor Memhardt. It was enlarged first in 1795-99 to serve as the residence of the Berlin garrison commandant.

At some point in the late 19th century, the Alte Kommandantur lost its old roofing, and a third level was added.

As happened with other historical buildings in Berlin, the Kommandantenhaus was heavily damaged by the Allied "strategic" bombing campaign. The Communist would demolish the remains of the building to make room for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (they demolished the Bauakademie for that purpose as well).

The Ministry was demolished in 1995, and the Kommandantur was rebuilt between 1999 and 2003 to serve as Bertelsmann Berlin Headquarters.

And now, the Neue Wache.

The Royal New Guardhouse of Berlin was built by architect Schinkel following the wish of Friedrich Wilhelm III, King of Prussia, for a new guardhouse for the nearby Kronprinzenpalais. The Neue Wache would also serve as a war memorial, since the pediment sculpture was a representation of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, deciding a battle in the Befreiungskriege (German Wars of Liberation from the French Empire).

The Neue Wache circa 1897, photochrom from the Library of Congress

After the German Revolution of 1918, the Neue Wache ceased to serve as a guardhouse. In 1931, architect Tessenow converted the building into a Memorial to the Fallen in War, and added the oculus to the ceiling. The building was damaged during WW2; after restoration, it served again as a guardhouse for the East German Volkspolizei/Nationale Volksarmee, and as a Memorial to the Victims of Fascism and Militarism (by this last word, they probably refered to Imperial Germany - interesting enough that the NVA held some massive parades in Unter den Linden).

Just a changing-the-guard ceremony in front of the Neue Wache, 1989

Parade for the 25th anniversary of the GDR, 1974

In 1995, after German Reunification, the Neue Wache was rededicated as the Central Memorial for the Victims of War and Tyranny.

Can you see it?

This picture is just a pre-release render. It's unfinished, but I hope to upload it soon to the Warehouse.

Kottbusser Tor

Kottbusser Tor was one of the original city gates, part of the so-called Berliner Zollmauer; the road through the gate lead to the town of Cottbus (Brandenburg). Both the U-Bahnhof and the area where it stands are named after the gate. However, that location is not where the original U- Bhf. Kottbusser Tor once stood.

U1 train type A3, leaving Kottbusser Tor on its way to Görlitzer Bahnhof.

The first station opened on February 18, 1902 as part of the U1 line. It was located near the corner of Mariannenstraße and Skalitzer Straße, and, as you can see in the picture below, shared the same shape of the U-Bhf. Oranienstraße (now Görlizter Bahnhof) .


This Station was demolished in 1926 following the construction of the U8 line. The current station was built ca. 170m westwards, and is now a two level station - The U1 platform is located in the elevated structure, and the one serving U8 is below ground level.

View of underground platform for the U8 line.

I also invite you to visit this interesting site (not mine), which has information and pictures of old U-Bahn stations. The website is in German, but I'm sure you will be easily able to understand.

Für Berlin, und Deutschland

As a gift to the German people in their holiday, today October 3, I have uploaded two new models to the Warehouse.

The Wittenbergplatz U-Bahnhof is one of the oldest U-Bahn stations in Berlin, having opened in March 1902. Here is a photo showing the first entrance.

In 1913, this entrance was replaced with a large hall built by architect Alfred Grenander in the Art Nouveau style. In 1952, the London Transport Board donated a London-Underground-like sign to conmemorate the 50 anniversary of the U-Bahn system (you can see the roundel as the logo of the model in the Warehouse).

Located in Kreuzberg, U-Bahnhof Görlizer Bahnhof opened in February 1902 as "U-Bhf Oranienstraße".

In 1926 it was renamed after the nearby Görlitzer Bahnhof, a railway terminus serving the mainline link connecting Berlin to Cottbus (Brandenburg), Görlitz (Saxony), Breslau (Silesia), and Vienna (Austria). The terminus was damaged in WW2 and demolished in the 1960s; however, the U-Bahnhof is preserved almost in its original condition.

Charlottenhof.

Today I have uploaded to the Warehouse another model located on Sanssouci Park: Schloss Charlottenhof.

Charlottenhof was built between 1826 and 1829 by Prussian architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel with the help of his student Ludwig Persius, by order of Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm (later Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia, "the Romantic in the Throne"); the Kronprinz had created some designs for the project. The Palace is located on the site of a former farm house, and was built as a neoclassical villa for the Crown Prince, who used it as his summer residence.

View in Google Earth

The furniture inside the palace was largely designed by Schinkel himself. The most dinstictive room is fashioned after a Roman Caesar's tent, decorated with blue and white patterns.

Stained glass in Charlottenhof - detail

The Palace is maintained by the Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg.

Well, this post is a request to the Berliners (and maybe a clue for what I'm doing now). I need a clear picture of the façade of the Hotel Esplanade in Bellevuestraße (the preserved one, behind the glass), with reflection as least as possible. Could someone please take some photos? You may upload the images to your favorite host-site (Imageshack, Photobucket, Flickr, etc) and post the link here as a comment. Thank you.

Coming surprise

You may want to know why I have not uploaded more models to the Warehouse recently. Well, I'm a little busy this last month. I have a surprise, but, I must say, you have to wait.

PD. Does anyone has a photo showing the entire Alte Postdamer Strasse façade of the Weinhaus Rheingold?