The Reichstag, Berlin
Germany’s Parliament building has had a turbulent and highly symbolic existence
The Reichstag is the home of Germany’s Parliament, and it has also proved to be a highly symbolic site — for various reasons — throughout its existence.
It was originally built — construction began in 1884 and was completed in 1894 — to symbolize German reunification after the Franco-Prussian War and the declaration of the German Empire that began in 1871.
The design, in a neo-Renaissance style, was by Paul Wallot and was intended to capture the spirit of German optimism. The building was funded by reparation payments made by the defeated French Republic.
In 1916, at the height of World War I, the words “Dem Deutschen Volke” (meaning “to the German people”) were added to the façade and are still in place today. At the end of the war in 1918, German defeat led to the formation of the Weimar Republic, the declaration of which was made by Philip Scheidemann at the Reichstag.
The symbolic importance of the building became apparent in February 1933 when the main hall of the Reichstag was destroyed by fire. Many explanations have been offered down the years as to how the fire started, but at the time the blame was placed on a young Dutch Communist named Marinus van der Lubbe, who…