DE-3477786 DE-3991267 Reichstagsgebäude (The Reichstag Building)

The Reichstag building (Reichstagsgebäude) is a historical edifice in Berlin constructed originally to house the Imperial Diet (Reichstag) of the German Empire. In 1871 Germany was reunited but the construction of the building did not begin till several years later. It was opened in 1894. In 1916 the iconic words Dem Deutschen Volke ("[To] the German people") were carved above the main façade of the building.

From 1894, the Reichstagsgebäude housed the Diet until 1933, when it was severely damaged in a fire.  The building suffered during the Battle of Berlin as Soviet planes targeted it in bombing raids.

After World War II, the building fell into disuse; the parliament of the German Democratic Republic (the Volkskammer) met in the Palast der Republik in East Berlin, while the parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany (the Bundestag) met in the Bundeshaus in Bonn.

The ruined building was made safe against the elements and partially refurbished in the 1960s, but no attempt at full restoration was made until after German reunification on 3 October 1990.  However, at that time, the role of Berlin had not yet been decided upon. Only after a fierce debate did the Bundestag conclude, on 20 June 1991 in favour of both government and parliament returning to Berlin from Bonn.

The Reichstagsgebäude then underwent a reconstruction. During the reconstruction, the building was first almost completely gutted, taking out everything except the outer walls, including all changes made in the 1960s. Respect for the historic aspects of the building was one of the conditions stipulated to the architects, so traces of historical events were to be retained in a visible state. Among them were graffiti left by Soviet soldiers after the final battle for Berlin in April–May 1945. Written in Cyrillic script, they include such slogans as "Hitler kaputt" and names of individual soldiers. However, graffiti with racist or sexist themes were removed, in agreement with Russian diplomats at the time.

The Evil of War - the Reichstag 1944

After its completion in 1999, the Reichstag once again became the meeting place of the German parliament: the modern Bundestag.



The interior of the Reichstag - from Torsten

The Reichstag Building during Christmastime.

Today the Reichstag is now the second most visited attraction in Germany.  A major attraction to visitors is the huge glass dome that was erected on the roof as a gesture to the original 1894 cupola, giving an impressive view over the city, especially at night. The first postcard came from Daniel (15 September 2014) Postcrossing.  The fourth postcard showing the Reichstag during the Christmas season came from Sabine (5 March 2015) Postcrossing.