Rotes Rathaus

The Rotes Rathaus (Red City Hall) has long been the political heart of Berlin. The Governing Mayor and the senate chancellery have their offices here, and the city senate meets in the building. The hefty brick structure went up between 1861 and 1871 to plans by the architect Hermann Friedrich Waesemann in the round-arch style, which blends northern Italian Renaissance echoes with Prussian severity. The name has nothing to do with politics; it simply comes from the distinctive red brick facade.

Visible from far off is the roughly 243-foot (74-meter) tower that gives the building its unmistakable silhouette. One architectural curiosity is the "Steinerner Bernau," a terracotta frieze running around the building below the second floor, telling the story of Berlin in 36 panels from its beginnings to the founding of the German Empire in 1871. Badly damaged in World War II, the city hall was rebuilt by 1958 and served as the seat of the East Berlin magistrate during the GDR years before becoming the seat of government for the whole reunified city.

The Rotes Rathaus sits centrally between the TV tower, the Nikolai Quarter and Alexanderplatz, so it slots easily into a walk through the historic center. The grand interior rooms such as the Wappensaal and the Säulensaal can be seen during official occasions or on pre-booked guided tours, and from the outside the building is a rewarding photo subject at any hour. The Neptune Fountain right in front is a good place to sit for a while.