December 31, 2009

The Brandenburg Gate
Author: Guest Author

Posted in Tourist Guide | |

The Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor) in Berlin is one of the foremost attractions that comes to mind when thinking of Germany. The Brandenburg Gate is the nationalized symbol of the country, and German past was made here – many different times. It has had a huge influence in German’s history and continues to do so as millions visit each year just to see this amazing monument.

The Brandenburg Gate became legendary in the Cold War, when it was the gloomy image for the separation of Berlin and Germany: The Gate stood between East and West Germany, becoming part of the impenetrable Berlin Wall.
Commissioned by Friedrich Wilhelm, the Brandenburg Gate was created by architect Carl Gotthard Langhans in 1791. It was the impressive entry to the avenue “Unter den Linden”, which led to the palace of the Prussian monarchs.
The Gate’s design has remained effectively unaffected since its completion even as it has played different political parts in German history. After the 1806 Prussian overwhelm at the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt Napoleon took the Quadriga to Paris, France.

The design of the Brandenburg Gate was enthused by the Acropolis in Athens. The tribute is crowned with the statue of the Quadriga, a four-horsed chariot driven by Victoria, the winged goddess of victory.
In the course of German history, the Brandenburg Gate had various one-of-a-kind parts; it represents the country’s chaotic past and its peaceful achievements like no other landmark in Germany.
In the Napoleonic Wars in 1806, after the French powers defeated the Prussian army, Napoleon’s troops grabbed the statue of the Quadriga to Paris as a conflict trophy. The Prussian army reclaimed it in 1814 with their triumph over their French counterparts.
More than a century later, the Nazis would use the Brandenburg Gate for their own reasons . In 1933, they marched through the gate in a martial torchlight procession, celebrating Hitler’s ascent to rule and introducing the darkest period of German chronicle.
When the Nazis came to influence they used the Gate as a party representation. The Gate survived World War II and was one of the few structures remaining in the Pariser Platz ruins in 1945 (another being the Academy of Fine Arts). The gate was dreadfully damaged with holes in the columns from bullets and nearby explosions. Following Germany’s submission and the conclusion of the war, the governments of East Berlin and West Berlin reformed it in a mutual effort. The holes were patched, and were evident for a lot of years following the war.

The Brandenburg Gate survived World War II with serious damages; in the Cold War, squeezed between East and West Germany, it became the site for ideological disputes. When John F. Kennedy visited the Brandenburg Gate in 1963, the Soviets hung massive red banners across the gate to prevent him from looking into the East.

After the peaceful reunification of Germany, the Brandenburg Gate was refurbished in 2000; this day, it is one of the most visited sites in Germany and in Europe. As such millions go to Berlin just to see the famous monument within Germany. So why do you get out there and make experience the stunning attraction that will definitely leave you in amazement.

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