Berlin

Basic data:

Geography:

The center of Berlin is a landscape shaped by glaciers in the Warsaw-Berlin glacial valley between the Barnim and Teltow plateaus. It lies at the narrowest point of the Urstomtal, through which the Spree flows in an east-west direction. The Havel, into which the Spree flows in the westernmost district of Spandau, flows through the western part of Berlin in a north-south direction. The course of the Havel often resembles a lake landscape, the largest of which are the bulges of the Tegeler See and the Große Wannsee.

The largest extent of the city in an east-west direction is about 45 km, in a north-south direction about 38 km.

The highest point in Berlin is on the Großer Müggelberg at 115.4 m above sea level. NN, the lowest point in the city is at the Havel lakes at 32 m above sea level. Berlin is completely surrounded by the federal state of Brandenburg and is located in eastern Germany. The border with Poland is about 70 km to the west.

Climate:

Berlin is located in the temperate climate zone. The mean annual amount of precipitation is 581 mm, with most precipitation falling in July. July is also the warmest month with an average of 18.5 °C.

City structure:

12 districts: Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Lichtenberg,
Marzahn-Hellersdorf, Mitte, Neukölln, Pankow, Reinickendorf, Spandau,
Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Tempelhof-Schoeneberg, Treptow-Köpenick

history:

Berlin emerged from the merger of the two cities of Cölln and Berlin and received a common town hall in 1307. The city was governed from 1415 to 1440 by Friedrich I, Elector of Mark Brandenburg. The unsuccessful protest "Berlin indignation" by the Berliners against the new palace built by Elector Frederick II Eisenzahn in 1448 had to be atoned for by the population losing many of their political and economic freedoms.

Three years later, when Berlin became a residence city, it lost its status as a free Hanseatic city. The Thirty Years` War between 1618 and 1648 damaged a third of the houses and reduced the town`s population by half. Under the reign of Friedrich Wilhelm known as the Great Elector from 1640, there was a policy of immigration and religious tolerance. Just one year later three suburbs were founded, Friedrichswerder, Dorotheenstadt and Friedrichstadt. Thanks to the immigration policy, 50 Jewish families from Austria found a home in Berlin in 1671. In 1685 Friedrich Wilhelm successfully campaigned for Brandenburg with the French Huguenots, whereupon more than 15,000 French people moved, of which 6,000 settled in Berlin.

As a result, around 1700, 20 percent of Berlin`s residents were French, whose cultural influence was great. Many immigrants also came from Bohemia, Poland and Salzburg. A year later, with the coronation of Frederick I as king in Prussia, Berlin became the capital. The merger of the cities of Berlin, Cölln, Friedrichswerder, Dorotheenstadt and Friedrichstadt in 1710 created the royal capital and residential city of Berlin. In 1861 further suburbs such as Wedding, Moabit, Tempelhof, Schöneberg and Spandau were incorporated.

Ten years later, in 1871, Berlin became the capital of the newly founded German Empire. In 1918, after the end of the war, the republic was proclaimed in Berlin. Thanks to the extensive incorporation of several cities, rural communities and estate districts, Berlin`s population exceeds the four million mark.Berlin was also the capital during the Nazi era. In 1936 the Summer Olympics took place. From 1933 thousands of Jews were expelled and murdered. During World War II, large parts of Berlin were destroyed. After the capitulation in 1945, Berlin, like all of Germany, was divided into four sectors.

USA, UK and France (Western Allies) occupied the western part of the city, the eastern part by the Soviet Union. Political differences between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union led to an economic blockade of West Berlin by the Soviet Union in 1948/49. This was overcome with the help of the Western Allies through the legendary "airlift". In 1949 the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) was founded with the capital Bonn in the west and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) with East Berlin as the capital in the east.

On August 13, 1961, the Cold War led to the building of the Berlin Wall by the GDR. East and West Berlin were now completely separate and could only be crossed at certain checkpoints. However, this was not allowed for the residents of the GDR and East Berlin, except for pensioners. In the autumn of 1989 the legendary fall of the Berlin Wall took place. In 1990 the two German states were reunited and in 1991 Berlin became the capital of Germany again. On September 1, 1999, the government and parliament began their work in Berlin.

Sights: