Gendarmenmarkt Berlin Design and utilization concept

Churchyard and market place (1688 - 1773 )

In the course of the population growth of the up-and-coming Prussian royal city of Berlin, the first considerations for a city expansion south of Dorotheenstadt were made from 1688 onwards. The street plan, which was divided into square and rectangular building blocks, was drawn up under the direction of Johann Arnold Nehring (1659-1695) by about 1695, with today's Friedrichstraße as the central development axis running from north to south.

In Friedrichstadt, which was still developing slowly at first, there was an opportunity to support the French Huguenots, who had been increasingly moving to Berlin since the edict of 8 November 1685, in establishing their own community. The Calvinists who had also settled here and emigrated from Switzerland had already been allocated an area for the construction of the so-called "Swiss cemetery" around 1690, which was located to the west of the existing fortifications. In this area, three building blocks had been kept free - presumably for the construction of a market place. On the northern block, Elector Frederick III allocated a building site to the Huguenots for their church in 1699. The southern block, which was already partly used as a cemetery, was given to the German congregation as a church building site with the condition that the church to be built could also be used by the Swiss Calvinists for holding services.

The architect Jean Louis Cayart (1645-1702), a Huguenot colonel and fortress architect in Prussian service, designed the French Church based on the model of the main Huguenot church of Charenton, which was destroyed in 1688. The planning of the German Church was based on a design by Martin Grünberg (1655-1707), who, together with Heinrich Behr, supervised the building of Friedrichstadt. Construction of the churches began in 1701, and while the French Church was consecrated four years later, the German Church took until 1708 to complete. Although the buildings, which differed in appearance, were surrounded by cemeteries from the beginning, burials also took place in the churches.

The Huguenot regiment Gens d'Armes was allocated new quarters on the square from 1710, after their original location in the old stables was needed for other purposes. The stables were built to the east of what is now Margrave Street, which borders the square towards the fortifications. Due to the constant expansion of the regiment, however, additional stables were soon required, which were built in 1733 around the cemetery at the French Church and two years later around the cemetery of the German Church. The old stable could be demolished with the grinding of the fortifications and the construction of the Hunter's Bridge in the same year.

Already in March 1726 it was determined that the square between the two churches should be used as a market. The "Project zur Anlegung des Marcts auf der Friedrich Stadt" provided for the following facilities: The long sides facing the churches were each to be bordered with solidly walled market stalls. Twelve "Scharren" (sales stalls) were planned on either side of a passageway in the central axis, with those to the north reserved for bakers and those to the south for butchers. On the narrow sides, the plan notes areas for flying structures for fruit and vegetable traders. The center of the square was to be occupied by a fountain shaded by eleven trees, around which nine vats were arranged for the sale of fish.

From city plans it can be seen that only a very small part of the market stalls were realized and the further design was omitted. As designation of the place the "new market" and the "middle market" were just as usual as "Friedrichstädtischer Lindenmarkt". The later name "Gendarmenmarkt", due to its military use, did not become common until the late 1770s.
At about this time, the Gens d'Armes regiment had moved into a new camp outside the city and was quartered in the newly built barracks in front of the Weidendammer Brücke in 1773. However, the demolition of the stables, which together with the military exercises of the regiment had always severely disturbed the market hustle and bustle on the square as well as church life and the use of the two cemeteries, dragged on until 1778.

Development into an architecture square (1774 - 1870 )

The withdrawal of the Gens d'Armes regiment represented a significant turning point in the further development of the square. This circumstance, as well as the abandonment of the cemetery at the German Church in 1762, made new considerations possible for the further structural development of Friedrichstadt at the previously urbanistically neglected interface to the old centre, which had already been directly connected for some time via the Jägerbrücke and Jägerstraße.

Thus Frederick II vehemently promoted the urban-architectural upgrading and renewal of the Gendarmenmarkt from 1774 onwards. However, a project developed by Bartholomé Robert Bourdet (1719-1799), which envisaged a completely uniform rebuilding of the entire square in Baroque forms, was not realised. According to this, the two houses of worship would have been completely integrated into the facades and would have received a completely new external appearance. In contrast, the 20 or so houses that were finally built as new peripheral buildings according to the plans of Georg Christian Unger (1743-1799) and Carl Philipp Christian von Gontard (1731-1791) by 1785 were much simpler.

Another prerequisite for the design and new use of the square was the relocation of the cemeteries at the two churches. The reorganization of the burial system under hygienic aspects had been initiated in the 1730s with the relocation of the first cemeteries in front of the Hallesche Tor. As early as 1763, the congregation of the German Church was assigned a new burial ground in Chausseestraße in front of the Oranienburg Gate north of the city. Finally, in 1780, the cemetery of the French congregation was moved there in direct proximity to the already existing cemetery of the German congregation.

The new structural center of the square was to be a new theater building on the middle segment of the square, which was erected in 1774 for the French Comedian Troupe. This building, designed by Georg Christian Unger and erected under the direction of Georg Friedrich Boumann (1737- after 1812) over a rectangular ground plan, was arranged on the western boundary of the square between the two churches. The building, which can be described as modest, was given a late Baroque temple façade on its east-facing entrance front.
The construction of the tower buildings, which were erected between 1780 and 1785 according to plans by Gontard and under the direction of Ungers and Boumann, in front of the two churches to the east, is to be regarded as a far more grandiose measure initiated by Frederick II to enhance the urban development of the square and its surroundings. The tower buildings, erected on a cruciform ground plan, were given a late Baroque façade design that was subject to strict central symmetry. The high porticoes, which were attached to the three free sides of the towers, formed with their triangular gables, each supported by six Corinthian columns, the architectural motif that dominated the square, which also adorned the main front of the Komödienhaus in a clearly restrained form.

The two church buildings now had a new representative position on the square due to the tower buildings, even if the towers had no function at that time. The churches, which had previously occupied an unequal position on the respective thirds of the square, found a new anchorage on the square with the help of the tower buildings, whereby the eastern facades were now in the same line. This created a clear urban edge to the opposite building fronts. With the tower buildings, Frederick II realized a project for the urban upgrading of the residential city, which sought its models and goals in French absolutism and its representative buildings.

At about the same time, the fortification of the streets surrounding the square took place, i.e. Charlottenstraße in the west, Französische Straße in the north, Markgrafenstraße in the east and Mohrenstraße in the south, as well as Jägerstraße and Taubenstraße, which divided the square into three quarters. The individual square areas were paved with cobblestones. The areas at the churches, where market days were still held, were separated from the surrounding sidewalks with iron posts.

The first Komödienhaus was soon to prove too small, so that it was decided to build a new house. According to a design submitted in 1798 by Carl Gotthard Langhans (1732-1808), an elongated building on a rectangular ground plan was erected on the western edge of the square, aligned with the two old church buildings, in which the first performance could take place on New Year's Day 1802 in the presence of King Frederick William III. With its portico dominating the eastern façade, the building, designed in the austere forms of early classicism, once again took up the architectural motif of the towers, which had shaped the square, in a new form. The location on the western edge of the square was deliberately chosen to keep the side porticos of the towers free and at the same time to form a generous square space bordered on three sides by solitary buildings and to close the space between the churches in the west.

But as early as 1817 a major fire destroyed Langhans' building. As a result, Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781-1841) was commissioned by the Royal Building Department to build a new National Theatre, which was completed by 1821. The building, which was designed in classical forms, was built on the foundations of the previous building.

Schinkel also adopted the portico motif supported by six columns and developed the main entrance of the theatre to the centre dominating the square by staggering the heights and projecting the buildings like a backdrop. This established the three representative buildings on the Gendarmenmarkt that still characterize its appearance today.

The square itself continued to be the site of market days, as well as rallies and political meetings. For the evening lighting lanterns were set up and water pumps were installed to keep the market clean.

Horticultural ornaments (1871 - 1935 )

In the second half of the 19th century and up to the turn of the century, a radical change took place in the square's perimeter development. Many of the adjacent houses were raised, rebuilt or demolished in the course of the Gründerzeit boom and replaced by much larger and more splendid new buildings. Primarily commercial, bank and office buildings were built, which led to changes in the urban form as well as the population structure around the Gendarmenmarkt.

During this time, the church buildings, which were in need of repair in the meantime, were repaired and their outer appearance was also changed. In 1881, the German Church was rebuilt on the old ground plan under Hermann von der Hude (1830-1908). While the design of the exterior facades remained unchanged, the interior was furnished in neo-baroque forms and the church was vaulted with a domed roof visible from afar. In 1904, the French Church was rebuilt under Otto March (1845-1913), with only minor changes to its exterior. The triangular gable on the west front facing Charlottenstraße is probably the most striking architectural innovation.

The changes in urban development and the changed uses of the surrounding buildings and the partly associated social upheavals among the residents led as early as 1853 to calls for tree planting and gardening on the Gendarmenmarkt. In March of that year, a "Circular in the Gensdarmenmarkt District" called for the beautification of the area "by means of parks, possibly linden avenues (...). Linden avenues (...) around the whole square, perhaps also linden arbours: without prejudice to the market traffic". However, this appeal, which was also directed financially at the residents, remained without consequences.

Only in connection with the erection of a monument to the poet Friedrich Schiller should it come to a horticultural decoration. On the occasion of the 100th birthday, a foundation stone for a monument was laid in front of the Schauspielhaus on November 10, 1859, which, according to the wishes of the monument committee, was to be unveiled on Schiller's 110th birthday. Twenty-five artists took part in the resulting competition. After lengthy appraisals and discussions, the magistrate decided on the design by the sculptor Reinhold Begas (1831-1911), which he modified again at the request of the committee. Due to the Franco-Prussian War, the unveiling of the monument was delayed and could finally take place on November 10, 1871. At the end of this year, the area of the Gendarmenmarkt in front of the Schauspielhaus and between Jägerstrasse and Taubenstrasse was named "Schillerplatz".

With the unveiling of the Schiller monument, the garden design of the area in front of the Schauspielhaus was also realized by the Berlin Garden Administration. An elongated wayside cross divided the square into four triangular areas, which were laid out as lawns and planted with groups of trees. The monument standing in the centre and enclosed with elaborate latticework led to a strong emphasis of the central axis of the whole area. In front of the staircase of the theatre, a transverse path served as its access. The redesign of the central section, as it was then, emphasized the three-way division of the Gendarmenmarkt by Jägerstrasse and Taubenstrasse, which had existed since the beginning.

The paved areas surrounding the churches continued to serve market purposes until 1886, when operations were moved to the newly created Zentralmarkthallen. Only now was the stage set for rethinking the design of the square in its entirety. Thus, the then city garden director of Berlin, Hermann Mächtig (1837-1909), finally submitted a design for the horticultural design in August 1893, which was approved for execution shortly thereafter and was carried out until 1895.

The copses in front of the theater, which had grown up high in the meantime, were removed and a generous access area was created, oriented towards the flight of steps, the center of which was still formed by the Schiller monument. This wide forecourt was framed in the manner of a carpet by elaborate decorative paving and bordered on both sides by elongated lawns. On each of the lawns were round fountain basins and lushly planted flower beds. In this way a representative square area was created, behind which the display façade of the playhouse was fully effective.

The arrangement of the gardens at the two churches took into account a passageway from all directions, with a bypass serving in each case to serve the buildings. In front of the churches on Margrave Street, trapezoidal widening carpets of lawn were laid out, adorned with symmetrically designed flower beds and groups of shrubs arranged at the sides. The rather organic and picturesque looking planting areas blurred the unequal position of the churches on the respective square areas.

Long stretched or lenticular lawn carpets, arranged on both sides of an imaginary axis of symmetry through the building, surrounded the German Cathedral. Groups of copses, stepped in height from east to west, lay loosely distributed in the lawn. Together with a few trees, they surrounded the building and at the same time formed the spatial closure of the square to the west and south. The plants at the French Cathedral were constructed according to the same principle. Due to the asymmetrical building position on the square island, there was a wide strip of grass to the north along French Street.
All vegetation islands were enclosed by low iron barriers. Pole lights served to provide illumination at night. Behind each of the churches were two lanterns on circular islands within the bypass. While the bypasses were made of asphalt, all other paths had a color-contrasting paving. On the islands mentioned as well as on path extensions there were decorative pavements in rosette forms.

After the horticultural design, the Gendarmenmarkt presented itself as an ornamental square of the late 19th century, typical of the period, with rich flower plantings and ornamental pavements of outstanding craftsmanship, which referred to the representative effect of the buildings. The Schiller monument and the high jets of water from the fountains formed the focal points of the garden.

The design of the square was subsequently simplified, mainly with regard to the flower arrangements. Individual groups of shrubs growing too high were also removed, so that from around 1920 simple lawns bordered by low iron gratings dominated the appearance. Various benches invited passers-by to linger.

Parade ground during the NS dictatorship (1936 - 1945 )

With the seizure of power by the National Socialists, a radical reorientation in urban planning and architecture began immediately, which was completely subordinated to the propagandistic goals of the totalitarian rulers. In Berlin, the capital of the Reich, representative building projects and redesign measures were undertaken very quickly, which were intended to serve the purpose of self-dramatization and the presentation of an allegedly cosmopolitan Germany in connection with the Olympic Games that were held here in 1936. In the old centre, important squares were redesigned, including the Lustgarten and Wilhelmplatz as well as the Gendarmenmarkt. Here in particular, the buildings of the Frederician Baroque and the Schinkel period provided a demonstration of "patriotic building tradition". In addition to presenting the appropriated architectural history, the square redesigns served primarily as parade grounds for propaganda events.

The planning for the Gendarmenmarkt envisaged clearing the green spaces along Markgrafenstraße and paving over the entire area. While it was to extend to the western façade of the Schauspielhaus, narrow green zones were still planned north of the Französisches Dom and south of the Deutsches Dom. In 1935/36, only the square in front of the Schauspielhaus was finally realised, paved with dark and light grey paving in a grid pattern. The Schiller monument was removed. Driveways from the streets at the same time allowed it to be used as a car park for motor vehicles.

Refurbishment and conversion work was also carried out on the Schauspielhaus itself. Essentially, this involved the creation of new magazine space. For this reason, the buildings at Charlottenstrasse 55 and 56 were purchased and converted into workshops and magazine rooms. A massive bridge structure at the level of the first and second floors served as a direct connection, spanning Charlottenstrasse.

During the Second World War, the Gendarmenmarkt suffered the same fate as so many squares and green spaces in Berlin. Most of the trees were cleared for use as firewood, and the former lawns were turned over and farmed to grow crops and grain. In the final months of the war, Allied bombing caused massive damage to the surrounding buildings as well as the two church buildings and the Schauspielhaus. The square areas, however, seem to have suffered relatively little substantial damage in comparison.

Reconstruction and redefinition (1945 ... )

After the Second World War, the Gendarmenmarkt, despite its use for potato and poppy cultivation in the meantime, remained in its basic structure with the pathways dating from 1895 in the area of the churches, the parade ground created in 1936, and the cross streets resulting in the division into three parts. In the course of the debris removal, the square was used for the storage of building materials.

On the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the Academy of Sciences, which had moved into the restored building of the former "Preußische Seehandlung" at the corner of Jägerstrasse and Markgrafenstrasse, the Gendarmenmarkt was renamed "Platz der Akademie" in 1950. In 1967, the first work began on the reconstruction and partial reconstruction of Schinkel's Schauspielhaus. With the exception of the tower, the French Cathedral was the first building on the square to be restored in 1983. To mark the reopening of the Schauspielhaus in 1984, the central section of the square was given a new surface paving and shortly afterwards the areas around the French Church were planted with small-crowned maple trees set in a grid pattern. This was done within the framework of a project for the design of open spaces, which had been developed by the VEB Ingenieurhochbau for the Magistrate of Berlin, capital of the GDR, "Aufbauleitung Sonderbauvorhaben" in 1978.

One of the main design ideas was to combine the square, which had previously been divided into three sections, by dissolving the two cross streets and raising the entire area by one or two steps above the surrounding street level. This made it possible to achieve an overarching and calm spatial effect that had never existed before. The complete opening of the area in front of the playhouse was intended to allow for unhindered crossing and free passage. The paving was made of granite slabs in combination with prefabricated concrete path slabs, in which in turn sawn mosaic paving made of granite with bands of dark concrete blocks was embedded. The alternation of slab and paving sizes, together with the colour-contrasting concrete stones, produced a generous grid with reference to the buildings.

In contrast, the peripheral zones at the churches, shaded by small-growth Norway maples with spherical crowns, were planned as intimate places to stay. Flowering shrubs along the church facades served to break up the colour. All furnishing elements, such as benches, lights, bollards, etc., were designed in the spirit of the classicist design developed by Schinkel, accentuated in colour and in some cases fitted with cast-iron decorative elements. The restored Schiller Monument was reinstalled at its original location in 1989.

The reconstruction of the German Cathedral, which began in 1983, was completed in 1996, with the interior of the heavily war-damaged building being fitted out in modern forms. In the course of this work, garden-historical excavations were carried out in the area on Charlottenstrasse. These areas had been used for the construction site for more than a decade and were therefore largely protected by construction fences and construction roads made of large-format concrete planks. After their dismantling, original components and structures of the facilities designed by Mächtig in 1895 were found with the help of the excavation work, such as paving, path boundaries, granite curbstones, foundations of the former lights and asphalt surfaces of the former bypass. These findings, together with the remaining trees and in comparison with historical photographs and maps, made it possible to restore this area in accordance with Mächtig's planning. The southwestern part of the Gendarmenmarkt is now restored to its 1920s condition with simplified plantings. In connection with the historic facades of the German Church, it illustrates the historical development of this important Berlin city square and at the same time stands in exciting contrast to the square design of the 1980s.

Overlays (Timeline )

Aspects of monument preservation flowed very intensively into the technical discussions.

Above all, the Monument Preservation Colloquium held by the State Monument Preservation Office on December 2, 2009 in the Französische Friedrichstadtkirche provided important impulses for the evaluation of the historical time layers to be found on the square as well as the furnishing elements. Renowned speakers contributed from different perspectives, which provided important insights, especially for the future handling of the Gendarmenmarkt. It turned out that the square has undergone a very formative historical development on the one hand, on the other hand, especially the current condition must be subjected to a balanced assessment.

As a common feature of many periods worth preserving was unanimously considered the generous, open space of the square, which in the latest version by the integration of Taubenstraße and Jägerstraße in the square area has gained even more. In contrast, the upstands and dense tree plantings are often viewed more critically; although they have a common history of origin, they represent rather untypical design features both in the context of the square's development and with a view to comparable squares.

In its development from the stone "architectural square" to the green "decorative square" to its present state, the square will have to be evaluated exclusively as a whole. Only a precise classification in the historical context and an appropriate appreciation of authentic testimonies can be the basis for far-reaching planning decisions.

With an open, balanced positioning of woody plants, the rich building facades can be experienced like a precious setting. Trees with high branches in particular allow free visual relationships and fit naturally into the urban grid. This was already recognized by Karl Friedrich Schinkel, who followed this principle in many of his concepts for Berlin's urban space.

to the stories back to overview

1. Churchyard and market place (1688 - 1773)
2. Development into an architecture square (1774 - 1870)
3. Horticultural ornaments (1871 - 1935)
4. Parade ground during the NS dictatorship (1936 - 1945)
5. Reconstruction and redefinition (1945 ...)
6. Overlays (Timeline)