Getting Ready

Reformation and Devastation

With the arrival of the Reformation around 1540, the Berlin Electors embraced Protestantism. From 1618-1648, Berlin was caught up in the Thirty Years War, a conflict between the Holy Roman Empire and Protestant armies. Imperial troops plundered the city and destroyed a third of the buildings, while outbreaks of plague decimated the population.

Greats and Not So Greats

Berlin flourished again under Friedrich Wilhelm, the “Great Elector,” who came to power in 1640. His policies included religious tolerance, immigration, economic expansion and strong defense. A standing army was established, sales taxes were introduced, and canals were built linking the Spree and Oder rivers. The Great Elector’s son Friedrich III succeeded him in 1688, and had himself crowned Prussian King Friedrich I. Under his rule, Berlin grew increasingly cosmopolitan, with the building of Schloss Charlottenburg and the establishment of the Academies of Arts and Sciences. Friedrich I also expanded Prussia’s military power, which was continued by his military-obsessed son Friedrich Wilhelm I, who built a great wooden wall around the city.

Friedrich II, known as Frederick the Great, used Berlin’s military power to his advantage in the Seven Years War with Austria and Russia (1756-63). But he was also a figure of the Enlightenment, and enacted a number of legal, administrative and economic reforms. Culture thrived, and the city was transformed as “Old Fritz” ordered the Tiergarten landscaped, palaces built, and Unter den Linden turned into a grand boulevard. By the time of his death, Berlin was one of Europe’s great powers.

His successor, Friedrich Wilhelm II, was not so enlightened – his rule was marked by censorship and extravagance. His most lasting achievement was rebuilding the city wall in stone, creating the Brandenburg Gate, an iconic symbol of Berlin.

Napoleonic Wars and Aftermath

Napoleon’s army occupied Berlin in 1806 and changed the political structure, giving Berlin’s citizens the power to form an administration. After the French troops left, reform-minded aristocrats began the modernization of the Prussian state. The first elections for Parliament were held (though only the wealthy could vote), Humboldt University was founded, and Jews were allowed to practice trade without restrictions.

Napoleon was no favorite of the Berliners, though – troops from Berlin aided in his defeat at Grossbeeren and Waterloo. The Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm III returned to power, but refused to honor constitutional reforms, and the hoped-for unification of German states did not come to pass. Though oppressed politically, the citizens flowered culturally, and elegant new buildings like the Altes Museum graced the city. Industrialization increased as well.

Political suppression continued under Friedrich Wilhelm IV, cumulating in a revolution in 1848. The King initially promised more freedoms, but tightened restrictions instead, including an income limit on eligible voters that reduced their numbers to 5%.

Kaiser Wilhelm and Bismark

The King’s brother took over as regent in 1857, becoming King Wilhelm I in 1861. He quickly established his anti-liberal attitude by appointing the authoritarian Otto von Bismark, the “Iron Chancellor,” as prime minister. Bismark pushed through army reforms, and quashed dissent with censorship and oppression. He was in favor of a unified Germany, but through aggression and dominance. After a successful series of wars, the German Empire was formed, and King Wilhelm was proclaimed Kaiser (Emperor) in 1871.

An economic boom followed, and Berlin grew into a modern metropolis. Grand monuments and buildings such as the Reichstag were built, but the working class suffered under the Kaiser's authoritarian regime. The Social Democratic Party was founded in 1869 as a voice for the have-nots. Kaiser Wilhelm II, famed for his mustache and bombastic style, took the throne in 1888. Science, art and culture blossomed with the founding of museums and the Opera House; however, military tensions in Europe were increasing. When Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, Germany declared war on Russia on Aug. 1, 1914, triggering World War I.

World War I and the Weimar Republic

The war proved disastrous for Germany. As the armies settled into trench warfare, Berlin’s citizens faced famines and started mass strikes. The Kaiser was forced by his own soldiers into abdication and exile – two days later, on Nov. 11, 1918, the war ended, but Berlin had erupted in a bloody bid for power. The uprising was suppressed and national elections were held, putting the Social Democratic Party in charge of parliament. Due to safety concerns, the government briefly moved to the town of Weimar, where a new constitution was drawn up; thus, the Weimar Republic was born.

The Versailles Treaty, which set the terms of peace after WWI, struck a serious blow to Germany’s pride and economy. Money was printed to pay reparations, which led to vast inflation, and some blamed “Jews and left-wingers” for restrictions placed on the military. A series of right-wing coups were attempted, including one by Adolph Hitler (for which he was imprisoned).

Things improved in the 20s, due to sounder fiscal policies. Berlin became a major center of avant-garde art and literature, with a decadent nightlife. But there was an undercurrent of social unrest, which came to a head with the Wall Street crash in 1929 and the global depression that followed. Unemployment reached 25%, and bloody political clashes were commonplace.

The Rise of the Third Reich

In 1932, as street violence reached a crisis, the Nazi party took 40% of the vote in the general election. Meanwhile, the depression continued, with one-third of citizens out of work. The government began acting on presidential decree, rather than through parliament, while extreme parties on the left and right vied to form coalitions. In a paradoxical move intended to limit Nazi power, Adoph Hitler was named chancellor on Jan. 30, 1933.

Persecution of Communists and other opponents started almost immediately. The Reichstag was damaged by fire on Feb. 27, almost certainly set by the Nazis, who used it as an excuse to bypass the constitution. Hitler passed an Enabling Act, legally ending democracy in Germany. Organized boycotts of Jewish businesses, doctors and lawyers began taking place; books declared “degenerate” were burned; Nazi Party membership became obligatory for many professionals. When President von Hindenburg died in August, Hitler named himself Führer (leader).

In 1936, the Summer Olympic Games were held in Berlin, and used as a showcase for Nazi rule. Evidence of their persecution of Jews was hidden, and visitors didn’t guess the truth about the regime. Beginning in 1938, thousands of Jews were arrested and their property destroyed; many others fled. After 1941, mass deportation of Jews to concentration camps began.

World War II

At first, France and Britain remained unaware of the danger Hitler posed. In 1938, he persuaded them to let him annex the Sudetenland, a German-speaking area of Czechoslovakia. But when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939, his real goals became clear, and Britain and France declared war on the Third Reich on Sep. 1. The Germans were initially successful, but suffered devastating defeats at Stalingrad and in the Mediterranean. The RAF launched the Battle of Berlin in 1943, reducing much of the city to rubble. The Red Army launched its own offensive in Jan-Feb 1945; when Berlin fell to the Russians at the end of April, Hitler committed suicide. Berlin officially surrendered on May 2, 1945.

Razed and Divided

Post-war, the city was in devastation, made worse by looting Red Army soldiers. The Yalta Agreement split the city in sectors: the Western zones under command of the French, British and Americans, and the Eastern zones under Soviet command. When attempts at shared administration failed, the Soviets began a blockade of West Berlin. Supplies brought in by the Western Allies via the “Berlin Airlift” kept the citizens from starving. The blockade was lifted after 11 months, but the Western Allies insisted on maintaining a presence there, linked to the new Federal Republic of Germany. In response, the Soviets founded the German Democratic Republic on Oct. 7, 1949.

Thus divided, East and West Berlin began to develop their own political and city-planning systems, but citizens could travel relatively freely between the sectors. In 1953, East Berlin workers staged a strike in protest of increased work quotas. Riots ensued – the uprising was eventually crushed by Soviet tanks. However, more and more East Berlin citizens were fleeing to West Berlin. The GDR’s response was the Berlin Wall, which was erected with a speed that caught the city by surprise. Beginning Aug. 13, 1961, West Berlin was sealed off by barbed wire within 24 hours; construction of the permanent wall began within days. The Western Allies protested, leading to a tense standoff between Soviet and American tanks at Checkpoint Charlie. Vice-President Johnson and President Kennedy came personally to West Berlin to show their support. But the wall was now a reality. In 1971, the city’s divided status was recognized by the Quadripartite Agreement, which formalized border posts and travel protocol.

Cut off from the western world and dependent on subsidies, West Berlin fell into decline, while many of East Berlin’s best writers and artists fled. Improvements to both halves of the city were made in honor of Berlin’s 750th birthday in 1987, including the restoration of the Nikolaiviertel. But dissent in East Berlin was growing. In 1989, Honecker, the East German leader, was ousted after thousands peacefully protested the GDR’s 40th anniversary celebrations. His successor appeased the crowds by granting East Germans the freedom to travel. When he opened the Berlin Wall on Nov. 9, it never closed again.

Reunification and Rebirth

As the wall was demolished, the Communist party collapsed. Free elections were held throughout the city in March, 1990, economic unification took place in June, and formal political unification happened on Oct. 3. However, East Berlin’s infrastructure was in decay. A wave of construction and investment began, increased by the 1991 decision to move the federal government from Bonn back to Berlin.

Since reunification, Berlin has been busy renewing itself, undertaking large projects such as the new Potsdamer Platz and the restoration of Museum Island and the Reichstag. Financial problems and scandal plagued the government in the early years of the 21st century, but with the election of Merkel as the first female chancellor in 2005, and the success of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Germany has once again recovered its international status.

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