Latest / The History of Germany: Kingdoms, War, and Rebuilding Europe — Fexingo History / The Berlin Palace: Humboldt Forum and Germany's Identity
Transcript
- Lucas: So Luna, you've been in Berlin a few times, right? Have you ever walked across the Spree on the Rathausbrücke and seen that massive, blocky building with the baroque facade and the huge dome? Luna: You mean the Humboldt Forum? That giant museum complex on the Museum Island? Lucas: Exactly. But what you're looking at is actually a reconstruction of the old Berlin Palace — the Stadtschloss — which was the seat of the Hohenzollern dynasty for almost 500 years. And the story of that building is basically the story of Germany's identity crisis. Lucas: The original palace was built in the 15th century, but it really took shape under the Great Elector Friedrich Wilhelm in the 17th century, and then under King Friedrich I, who commissioned the architect Andreas Schlüter to give it that Baroque look. Schlüter designed the main facade with those massive statues and the dome you see today. Lucas: That palace represented Prussian power and, later, German imperial ambition. After the fall of the monarchy in 1918, it became a museum and a sort of ghost of the old regime. Luna: So what happened to it? I know it's not actually the old building, right? Lucas: Right. The palace was heavily damaged by Allied bombing in World War II, but it was still standing. The East German government under Walter Ulbricht decided to demolish it in 1950, partly because it was a symbol of Prussian militarism and monarchy, and partly to clear space for a new kind of public square. Lucas: That decision was hugely controversial. Some people argued it was a loss of architectural heritage. Others saw it as a necessary break with the past. But in 1976, the East Germans built the Palast der Republik — the Palace of the Republic — on the same site. It was a modernist glass and steel building that housed the Volkskammer, the East German parliament, and also a huge cultural center with bowling alleys, restaurants, and a disco. Luna: I've heard people talk about the Palast der Republik almost nostalgically. Like it was the heart of East Berlin's social life. Lucas: Exactly. For many East Germans, it was a beloved space — a place where they could gather, see concerts, just hang out. It had this giant 'Palast' sign and a mural that wrapped around the building. But after reunification, the debate started about what to do with the site. Some wanted to preserve the Palast as a monument to East German history. Others wanted to rebuild the original palace. Lucas: The pro-palace camp argued that the old Stadtschloss was a masterpiece of Baroque architecture and that its reconstruction would restore Berlin's historic city center. The Palast der Republik had asbestos problems and was structurally unsound, they said. So in 2006, the Bundestag voted to demolish the Palast and rebuild the Stadtschloss. Luna: That must have been a fierce debate. I imagine some people felt it was erasing East German history. Lucas: Absolutely. The Palast der Republik was a symbol of the GDR, and destroying it felt like a victory lap for the West. But the compromise was that the new building would house the Humboldt Forum — a museum of world cultures named after the brothers Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt. The idea was that it would be a place for global dialogue, not just a Prussian nostalgia trip. Lucas: But even that has been controversial. The Humboldt Forum opened in 2020, and its exhibitions include non-European artifacts collected during Germany's colonial period. Critics say the Baroque facade is a kind of aesthetic whitewash — that it pretends the colonial pillaging never happened. And there's been a huge debate over whether the museum should display things like the Benin Bronzes, which were looted from Nigeria. Luna: So it's not just a building. It's a whole argument about memory and identity. Lucas: Right. And you see that tension in the smallest details. For example, the architects included a small cross-shaped element from the Palast der Republik's facade — the so-called Kreuzberg Cross — built into the new palace's side. It's a tiny nod, but it makes a statement. The question is: can this building ever be a neutral space for culture, or is it always going to be haunted by Prussia, by the GDR, by colonialism? Luna: It feels like Germany is still trying to figure out how to reconcile all those layers of history in a single building. Lucas: Exactly, and that's what makes it so fascinating. The Berlin Palace reconstruction is not really about architecture. It's about what Germany wants to remember and what it wants to forget. And that's a conversation that's very much still ongoing. Lucas: You know, if this conversation about how a building can hold so much history was useful to you, I should mention that the show stays ad-free thanks to listener support. If you'd like to help keep these deep dives coming, you can buy me a coffee at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a simple way to chip in if the show brings you something valuable. Luna: Yeah, it's a small gesture that really makes a difference. And it means we don't have to interrupt the conversation with sponsor breaks. Lucas: Exactly. So, back to the palace: one of the most striking things about the Humboldt Forum is that it's already become a site of protest. In 2021, activists projected messages onto the facade demanding the return of looted artifacts. So the building is not just a passive container — it's become an active part of the debate. Luna: It's like the building itself is a stage for the very conflicts it was meant to resolve. Lucas: That's a great way to put it. And it raises an interesting question: can a reconstructed palace ever be a progressive space? Or is its very form a kind of conservative statement? The Humboldt Forum's directors have tried to address this by including critical exhibitions about colonialism and by working with source communities on restitutions. But critics say that's just window dressing. Lucas: At the same time, the palace has become a popular tourist attraction. People love the dome, the views, the cafes. And the exhibits themselves — like the ones on African art or Asian porcelain — are stunning. So there's a real tension between the building as a leisure space and as a site of historical reckoning. Luna: I guess that tension is probably inevitable. Germany can't just pick one past and stick with it. Lucas: No, and that's the point. The Berlin Palace reconstruction forces everyone to confront multiple histories at once: the Hohenzollern monarchy, the GDR, reunification, colonialism. It's messy, but it's also honest. Maybe the best we can hope for is a building that doesn't pretend to have all the answers, but instead asks the right questions. Lucas: And that's what the Humboldt Forum tries to be — a forum, a place for conversation. Whether it succeeds or not is still up for debate. But at least the conversation is happening. Luna: So if I go to Berlin next week, what should I look for when I visit? Lucas: I'd say start outside. Walk around the entire building. Notice how the baroque facade on three sides gives way to a more modern glass and steel entrance on the west side. That's a deliberate design choice — to show the layers. Then inside, check out the Ethnological Museum collections, but also look for the small information panels that critique the colonial context. And finally, go up to the dome. From there, you can see the Berliner Dom, the Fernsehturm, the Reichstag — all the different eras of German history in one view. Luna: It sounds like a history lesson in itself. Lucas: It really is. And that's why the palace reconstruction is such a powerful symbol. It's not just a building — it's a mirror held up to Germany's past and its present.