Berlin Rotes Rathaus Berliner Rotes Rathaus
First | Previous Picture | Next Picture | Last | Berlin
Berlin Rotes Rathaus Berliner Rotes Rathaus
Berlin Rotes Rathaus, literally Red Town Hall, is the seat of the Berlin Senate
– city government – as opposed to local, district government which is housed in
the district Town Halls. Berlin is one of the 16 German Länder or States which
make up the German Federal Republic.
Berlin, a city which tends to lean
towards the left of the political spectrum, has been ruled from inside this
building since 1869 - reunited Berlin from 1991. The name red actually refers to
the building’s red clinker bricks which make its façade instantly recognisable.
The ruling Mayor’s offices are located here and those of the Berlin Senators who
make up the city ruling government or Senate. Klaus Wowereit, who became famous
around the world for his outspoken outing in 2001 “I’m gay and that’s OK”, has
been Berlin’s unconventional ruling mayor since 1995.
The Rotes Rathaus
served as the administration building for the East Berlin government in the
1950s after war damage restoration was completed, whereas Rathaus Schoneberg –
famous for President Kennedy’s memorable address to Berliners and his assertion
of commitment to the city - “Ich bin ein Berliner” - seated the separate West
Berlin government.
Berlin had a medieval town hall but a new town hall
became a necessity in the 1850´s as the growing industrial city craved
independence from the long rule of the Hohenzollern monarchs. The building was
designed by Hermann Friedrich Waesemann an assistant to the court architect
Stüler and was built between 1861 and 1869. It is huge, nearly (99m by 88 m)
with four main wings and inner courtyards with intermediate wings in the
interior.
Architecturally, Waeseman’s design for Berlin’s municipal
power house had moved away from the dominant Classicism of the Schinkel era and
was clearly influenced by the high Renaissance style of municipal buildings from
the strong city states of Italy or Flanders to differentiate them from the style
of royal palaces.
Interesting features are the rows of arches and the
four storeys linked by tall window frames. The building’s fortress-like
appearance was achieved by the overhanging balustrade linked to the projections
in the corners. The 74 metre high tower rising above its main portal is its
defining characteristic and a terracotta frieze from 1879 traces and illustrates
the city’s history until 1871 in 36 panels.
Germany Berlin