Berlin, Rathaus, Marienkirche

This photo, taken from the 1,209-foot-high Fernsehturm (TV tower), shows the Rotes Rathaus, the building that was the Berlin City Hall from 1859 to 1949. In 1948 as a result of various incidents in the City Government, the non-communist members left the offices in Berlin’s Rotes Rathaus (Red City Hall, named for the color of the brick, not the political leanings of the East Berlin Government) located in Alexanderplatz, and formed a new city council at Schöneberg, located at what was then called “Rudolph-Wilde-Platz.” After President Kennedy was assassinated, it was renamed “John-F.-Kennedy Platz,” to commerate his “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech given at that spot on June 26, 1963.

The cornerstone of the red-brick church, Marienkirche (St. Mary’s) the second oldest church in Berlin, was laid about 1270, and was consecrated in 1292. Over the centuries St. Mary’s has been damaged by fire several times, and church records say the 1661 lightning fire was put out by worshippers carrying both milk and water. During his visit to Berlin in 1747, Johann Sebastian Bach loved to play the church organ because of its excellent acoustics.