What Really Happened at the Brandenburg Gate?

The Brandenburg Gate stands as Berlin’s most iconic landmark, bearing witness to over two centuries of European history. In this video, you’ll explore its origins under the Prussian kings, experience Napoleon’s triumphal procession, and delve into the unification of Germany. Discover how Johann Gottfried Schadow’s Quadriga was taken to Paris, how Karl Friedrich Schinkel reimagined the Gate’s design, and how it became a backdrop to the Spartacist uprising and the Nazi march of January 1933.

You’ll learn about the damage it sustained during the Second World War, its symbolic role during the Cold War as the Berlin Wall divided the city, and its place in the celebrations when the Wall fell in 1989. And yes, you’ll find out why David Hasselhoff was singing on a crane.

If you’re interested in the history of Berlin, the fall of the Berlin Wall, or the legacy of WWII and the Cold War, this is a story you won’t want to miss.

++++++

Want more Berlin history? Check these out:

🎙️ Podcast: History Flakes – The Berlin History Podcast
https://www.whitlams-berlin-tours.com...

📸 Instagram:
  / whitlamsberlintours  

🎵 TikTok:
  / whitlamsberlin  

💬 Threads:
https://www.threads.net/@whitlamsberl...

🦋 BlueSky:
https://bsky.app/profile/jonnywhitlam...

++++++

Want to see Berlin together in real life? Check out my tours homepage:
https://www.whitlams-berlin-tours.com

++++++

Image Credits

Creative Commons images licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 & 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...

Napoleon entering Berlin, Charles Meynier, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate 1871, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Spartacist Uprising, January 1919, New-York Tribune, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate 1933, Erinthecute, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate 1945, Bundesarchiv, B 145 Bild-P054320 / Weinrother, Carl / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Brandenburg Gate 1961, Bundesarchiv, Bild 145-P061246 / o.Ang. / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Brandenburg Gate 1989, Lear 21 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

David Hasselhoff 2008, superde1uxe, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Humboldt Forum, 2023, A.Savin, FAL, via Wikimedia Commons

Berlin Akisemauer Map, Sansculotte (talk · contribs), CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons

Bismarck, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R68588 / P. Loescher & Petsch / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Friedrich Ebert, Bundesarchiv, Bild 102-00015 / Georg Pahl / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Hitler leaving the Reich President’s palace, 1933,
Bundesarchiv, Bild 102-15347 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Brandenburg Gate without statue, 1953, Joergsam, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate 1981, Presse03, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate, 1985, Joergsam, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Statue being replaced, 1958, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-58697-0001 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Aerial photo of Kreuzberg Monument, A.Savin, FAL, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate, 1987, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-1987-1008-306 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Soldiers at the Brandenburg Gate, 1961, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-85458-0002 / Junge, Peter Heinz / CC-BY-SA, CC BY-SA 3.0 DE, via Wikimedia Commons

Bundesarchiv, Bild 137-048390 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate, 1961, Bundesarchiv, Bild 145-P061246 / o.Ang. / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Map Greater Berlin Act of 1920, Maximilian Dörrbecker (Chumwa), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Map of 1945-occupied Berlin, Stefan-Xp, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brandenburg Gate 1984, GeorgeLouis at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Checkpoint Bornholmer Strasse, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-1989-1118-018 / Roeske, Robert / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Bundesarchiv, Bild 102-15191 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Günter Schabowski press conference, Nov 9, 1989, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-1989-1109-030 / Lehmann, Thomas / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Günter Schabowski, 1982, Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-1982-0504-421 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Guard looking through the Wall, Sharon Emerson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons