Brief history of the Landtag building The long road from City Palace to Landtag Palace View of the Brandenburg Landtag building Table of contents

05 06 07 08 Twenty-Two Years to From Medieval Castle The Era of the Great The Palace Find the Parliament a to the Renaissance Elector Frederick and Prussian Permanent Home Palace of Katharina, William (1640-1688) Monarchy Electress of Saxony

10 11 12 14 The End of the The Demolition A New Beginning with Policy Decision City Palace Decision the Reconstruction of the Fortuna Gate

15 16 16 17 Fight of Potsdam’s The new Landtag The Ceremonial Architect and Building Citizenry for Takes On Shape Handover of Keys Design “Their Palace” to the Parliament’s President

20 The New Building and Surrounding Areas in Facts and Figures

TABLE OF CONTENTS 3

Brief history of the Landtag building: The long road from City Palace to Landtag Palace�

1. Twenty-Two Years to Find the On 16 January 1991, the Landtag re­ Parliament a Permanent Home solved that the Brauhausberg was to be used as the site of the future parliament. Following the reunification of Germany The decision was preceded by the ru- on 3 October 1990 and the Brandenburg mour (unfounded, as it turned out) that Landtag elections on 14 October 1990, the structural safety of the plenary cham- the Landtag and the Land government ber at Heinrich-Mann-Allee, used up that were at first jointly housed in the former point, could not be guaranteed.� Even cadet school, previously the offices of though experts would not recommend the Potsdam District Council at Heinrich- the indefinite use of Havelblick 8 given its Mann-Allee 107, now home to the State­ inadequacy as a parliament building, the Chancellery. These are the same pre- members of parliament (MPs) neverthe­ mises at which the Landtag of 1946 had less moved into the building (dubbed the previously met. However, accommodat­ “Kremlin”) as soon as the most essen- ing the regional parliament on these pre- tial construction work had been complet­ mises over the long term would have ed; the first plenary session ofLandtag ­meant housing the Land government Brandenburg on the Brauhausberg was on the Brauhausberg, a proposal that held on 25 September 1991. immedia­tely met with considerable mis- After protracted discussions about a givings, in particular due to their previous permanent home for the parliament and use as the regional offices of the SED thanks to the dedicated efforts of citi- (Socialist Unity Party).� zens, organisations and sponsors who had already enabled the rebuilding of the “Fortunaportal” (Fortuna Gate), the Landtag passed a policy resolution on 1 Based on the publication “Das Potsdamer Stadt- schloss” (Potsdam City Palace) by Hans-Joachim 20 May 2005 paving the way for a new Giersberg (1998) and the “Baudokumentation building in the heart of Potsdam City that Neuer Landtag Brandenburg” (Building Documen- tation: New Landtag Brandenburg), published in would retain the façade of the old City 2014 by the Ministry of Finance. With gratitude to the city archaeologist Gundula Christl for valuable 3 See also: President of Landtag Brandenburg corrections. (publisher): “Von der Kriegsschule zum Parlament” 2 Press release from the Head of the State Chancel- (From Military Academy to Parliament). Potsdam lery Dr Jürgen Linde on 19 April 1991 2000.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 5 Palace which had been destroyed in a 2. From Medieval Castle to the British air raid in April 1945 and demol- Renaissance Palace of ished in 1959/60. The new building took Katharina, Electress of Saxony three-and-a-half years to complete and was handed over to Gunter Fritsch, who The site of the Palace is part of the ear- was Landtag President at the time, by liest settled areas of Potsdam. Archae- the then Minister of Finance of the ­State ologists have discovered that the site has of Brandenburg, Dr Helmuth Markov, on been settled repeatedly since the Stone 10 October 2013. In the 25th year of the Age, due to the location offering safety Peaceful Revolution, the opening of this from flooding. The city of Potsdam grew modern parliament building, set in its out of this site over the course of time. historical shell, signalled the closure of The first recorded mention of the a gaping scar on the urban landscape of Slavic fort “Poztupimi” dates back to the state capital since 1959. 933. The area west of the Slavic fort (at Completion of the Landtag was ini­ the present intersection of Heilig-Geist- tially scheduled for late 2012 and the Strasse and Burgstrasse) was marked move into the new premises for early­ out with streets and residential quar- 2013. The move eventually took place ters as early as 1200. Directly beneath from 12 to 16 December 2013 enabling the carriage drive, archaeologists found the Parliament to start its work in the ­evidence suggesting a moated castle new building still in the very same year. built around 1320. In 1528, Elector Jo- The 6th Landtag was constituted on achim I built a fortified castle with five 8 October following the Landtag elec- ­towers on the site. In 1598/99, Elector­ tions of 14 September 2014. In her Joachim Friedrich then replaced this speech, newly elected Landtag presi- with a small palace intended for his wife dent Britta Stark pointed out among Katharina. The Palace was 60 metres­ other things: “For the first time we are long and measured 14 metres across. celebrat­ing the constituent Landtag as- Its three floors contained a total of 38 sembly in our new Landtag building. rooms, including a large hall and what It stands here right in the middle of was known as a “Tafelstube” (dining Potsdam, in the midst of life. Since its room) on the second floor. ­opening in early 2014, we have been able However, as a result of the to draw almost as many visitors as the ­premature death of the Electress, the old Landtag did in 20 years! Our Landtag new building was never fully complet­ is a very open house. I wish to retain this ed. After the equally premature death openness and I suggest that we hold an of his second wife Eleonore, the Elector­ open house weekend once a year, ­eventually lost all interest in the Palace­ and turn it into a feast of democracy.­ and spent his time in Joachimsthal to I want to offer our visitors not only a the north of Berlin. The Palace lost its ­beautiful building but also a site of ­attraction and was eventually pledged as ­democracy in action.” collateral.

6 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING Saved by archaeologists: 500 square metres of stone floor from the dining hall of the great Elector dating back to the 17th century. An “archaeological window” in the new Landtag building provides a view of its historic heritage.

3. The Era of the Great Elector The first floor of the main wing, the Frederick William (1640–1688) “Corps de Logis”, housed a prestigious hall, the latter-day “Marmorsaal” (Marble The Great Elector Frederick William ac- Hall). Situated on the ground floor below quired the Palace in 1660. He had a new and level with the “Lustgarten” was a palace built between 1664 and 1669 vaulted hall used as a pleasantly cool based on the Dutch model, but this rap- dining hall during the summer months idly proved to be too small and be- while also serving for funeral wakes for tween 1679 and 1682 was extended members of the Elector family. to twice the original length. The main The Great Elector issued the “Pots- build­ing extended over three floors. damer Toleranzedikt” (Edict of Potsdam) With its enlarged and remodelled “Lust- from the City Palace in 1685: He invited garten” (Pleasure Garden), the Palace Protestant Huguenots, then persecuted ­became a prestigious residence and a in France on religious grounds, to live in ­dominant feature at Alter Markt in the Brandenburg in freedom­ and safety, and centre of town. The City Palace had by refugees were given generous privileges. then obtained­ the space it would occupy ­until its demolition in 1959/60, and which ­today is taken up by the Landtag.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 7 4. The Palace and Prussian of his palaces as possible and keep only Monarchy a few. The Potsdam City Palace was one of the few to remain in the king’s posses- Frederick I, First King of Prussia sion. In contrast to Charlottenburg Palace, (1688–1713) however, it was used as a family resi- The Elector Frederick III succeeded his dence rather than on state business. The father, the Great Elector, to the throne in vaulted basement was converted into a 1688. The new Kingdom of Prussia was wine cellar in 1726. Only minor repairs created on crowning himself King Fre- were undertaken to the rest of the Pal- derick I of Prussia at Königsberg in 1701. ace while Potsdam was converted to a In preparation for the coronation and to garrison city instead. As the city expand­ reflect the new royal status, several ed, the regular division into districts re- striking changes were made to the exte- sulted in a distinct chessboard pattern rior of the Palace and the Lustgarten. and followed the lines of the main arteries A new entrance gate in the French style from the time of the Great Elector run- was built whereby the figure on top, For- ning towards the Palace. Urban develop- tuna (or goddess of good fortune) subse- ment thus centred entirely on the Palace quently gave rise to the name “Fortuna- ­whose location between the town centre­ portal”. The Palace became a place of in the north and the Havel River in the lavish celebrations and even the site of a south ­turned it into an important landmark meeting between the Saxon and Danish ­visible from all directions. kings in 1709. Frederick II, also known as “Frederick Frederick William I, the “Soldier King” the Great” or “The Old Fritz” (1740– (1713–1740) 1786) and his new residence Given the extremely perilous state of the In 1740, Frederick II became King of Prus- finances left behind by his predecessor, sia. He used Charlottenburg Palace as his the Soldier King decided to sell as many residence during his first years in office.

The historic Potsdam City Palace

8 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING In 1743, the king moved into the Potsdam Palace was accordingly used on ­state City Palace, taking up quarters east of business and occupied by Frederick II in the Marble Hall. In spite of renovations to the winter, another palace – also in the the façade, Frederick II was dissatisfied ­Rococo ­style – was built between 1745 with the overall appearance of the City and 1747 as a summer residence. This Palace. With the help of architect Baron was the Sanssouci Palace to which only Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff, the the King’s personal guests were invited. Palace was extended between 1744 and 1751, taking on its final shape which 250 Frederick William II, years later would become the blueprint “The Fat Scallywag” (1786–1797) for the new Landtag building. The new occupant of the City Palace did Fundamental changes were made to not share his uncle Frederick II’s love of the façade to give it a uniform structure. Baroque and Rococo forms. He there- The magnificent staircase was designed fore handed over his apartment in the to accentuate the central part of the Pal- northwestern corner of the Palace to his ace and the section leading up to the sons Frederick and Ludwig, and had the Great Hall. “Marmorpalais” (Marble Palace) in the Frederick II furnished the building­ Early Classical style built at the “Neuer with exquisite furnishings. ­Ongoing Garten” (New Garden) between 1787 and ­construction work around the City ­Palace 1792. He also moved his residence back was a further demonstration that Pots- to Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin. He dam had been chosen as the home of the was not greatly respected due to his he- royal family, with the Knobelsdorff Palace­ donistic inclinations. The people of Neu- in the style of Frederician Rococo at the ruppin nevertheless erected a statue very heart of the city. The ­interaction be­ to him in 1829 (reconstructed in 1998) tween the Palace and the buildings at in gratitude for the reconstruction of the ­Alter Markt gave rise to one of the finest town in the Classical style following a city- town squares in Europe. Whilst the City wide conflagration.

Frederick William III (1797–1840) Although Charlottenburg ­Palace ­remained the royal residence af- ter the change of government, even ­after his marriage to Princess Luise of Mecklenburg-­Strelitz, Frederick Wil- liam III still kept an apartment in the City Palace,­ which was the object of ­numerous ­alterations after 1799. The couple ­enjoyed staying there until Luise’s death in 1810. Comparison of the original Fortuna Gate and the replica made in 2002

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 9 Frederick William IV (1840–1861) In the wake of the 1918 revolution and also used the City Palace as a winter res- the end of the monarchy, the Palace idence during his reign. However, his became a ward of the body administer­ ideas for redesigning it, in particular the ing the crown estates, itself the suc­ façade to the Lustgarten, no longer came cessor to the imperial and royal office of to fruition due to his illness. Lord Chamberlain. Under the agreement on the apportionment of Prussian assets William I (1861–1888), Frederick III and liabilities, the Palace was included (1888), William II (1888–1918) in the properties managed by the State Interest in Potsdam dwindled conside­rably Heritage Office (Verwaltung der staatli- under the last three Prussian kings who were chen Schlösser und Gärten) founded in also Emperors of Germany. They usually 1927. resided in Berlin whilst the Palace served The Palace served as the seat of solely as a second residence. Out of respect the municipal authorities during the Wei- for the achievement of Frederick II, none of mar Republic; the City Assembly held its them sought to alter the design of the buil- meetings in the new palace hall from ding realised during the latter’s reign. 10 September 1920 onwards. Accommoda- tions for council staff were put up inside the building which also housed the local 5. The End of City Palace labour exchange and parts of the city’s On 9 November 1918, people gathered administration. on the site of the City Palace, disarmed The “Yellow Saloon”, the living room the castle guards and forced their way of Queen Luise, was ­reconstructed in into the building without ransacking it, 1932 and reopened to the public at however. This symbolically brought the Whitsuntide 1932. The museum re­ rule of Prussian monarchy to an end. mained in operation until 1941.

The destroyed Potsdam City Palace

10 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING The City Palace burnt down to the enclos­ Fifteen architects and engineers from ing walls following a British air raid on the the city’s building planning agency city on 14 April 1945. As only few of the (VEB Hochbauprojektierung Potsdam) ex- sumptuous interior fittings had been re- pressed their displeasure with the demoli- moved to air raid shelters or other build­ tion ruling in a letter of protest to the Pots- ings for safekeeping, most furnishings left dam District Council. They did not see any in the Palace were irretrievably lost in the need for it in terms of urban planning and ensuing fire. The exterior façade of the felt the demolition would destroy architec- Palace also suffered severe damage dur­ tural harmony. ing the raid. High-explosive bombs left a They were summoned to the District trail of destruction through the West Wing Council on 17 November 1959 and strict- and virtually destroyed the “Fortunapor- ly enjoined from further protests against tal”. By contrast, almost the entire ex­ the planned demolition. At the “Schau- panse of the remaining façades survived stelle Landtag” (Landtag Showcase) ex- up to the level of the cornices, albeit hibition, long-serving former director of ­damaged by the fire. the Potsdam Museum Hartmut ­Knitter provided a highly graphic illustration of how out of touch the GDR authorities 6. The Demolition Decision were. He still had a very clear recollec- Following deliberations over whether to re- tion of a poster with the inscription “Fort build or to preserve the ruins, on 13 No- mit dieser Brutstätte des Feudalismus” vember 1959 the Potsdam City Assembly (“Away with this hotbed of feudalism”). voted for their demolition. Prior thereto, the The former head of the GDR Agency for reigning Socialist Unity Party (SED) had al- the Preservation of Monuments, Ludwig ready sealed the fate of the ruins on 12 May Deiters, was able to list 368 preserved 1959 at the highest “politbureau” level. items. Citizens, too, had helped salvage The remains of the City Palace were individual pieces of the demolished ruins demolished between November 1959 and in spontaneous acts of rescue. April 1960. At the very start of the demoli- Once the demolition work had fin­ tion works, the “Fortunaportal” was blown ished, multilane roads were deliberately up in what was a deeply symbolic act. The laid over the area around the City Pal- South Wing, with walls that incorporated ace and a major intersection was built earlier buildings and thus were massively on the site of the Palace itself to erase oversized, was blown up towards the end any reminders of it. The Alter Markt of the works and the rubble carted off to situated to the northeast of the former many different places. Loose debris and Palace, too, waned in importance as a parts of the West Wing were used for a result. stadium built between 1947 and 1949 on Next to new buildings surrounding the grounds of the former Lustgarten. the Nikolai Church, a new hotel (today the Artists, architects and Potsdam residents “Mercure”) was intended to overlook the protested against the demolition. Lustgarten site.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 11 The only building in the immediate vicini­ lace. For many, the only solution worth ty to have survived air raids and demoli­ considering was one that filled in the large tion works more or less unscathed gap in the urban landscape between Alter were the former royal stables. Originally Markt, Lange Brücke and Breite Strasse in intend­ed to be torn down as well, they an appropriate manner. Initially, no ­viable were eventually preserved due to urban concept for either the use or the financ­ planning changes. ing of the building was put forward. The Also preserved was a section of what large intersection in front of the ­Mercure was known as the “Ringerkolonnade” Hotel alone threw up problems. Since it (Wrestlers’ Colonnade) which originally had been laid over parts of the Palace linked the stables with the West Wing of complex, consideration had first to be the Palace. At the end of the 1960s, this given to relocate the intersection before initially became part of an open space in major reconstruction works could begin. the redeveloped Lustgarten which incor- porated parts of the Palace, before it was 7. A New Beginning with the returned to its original location in 2016. Reconstruction of the In one of the final prestige projects Fortuna Gate undertaken in the GDR, work began at the end of the 1980s to build a major new The debate on shaping the Potsdam city theatre on the site of the former City Pal- centre never died down after the demoli- ace. However, opposition to this scheme tion of the City Palace because the open grew steadily after the fall of the Berlin area left behind was felt to be a gaping Wall and the reunification of Germany in wound. As early as 1990, the city com- 1989/90. Concerns were initially voiced mitted itself to ensuring that the devel­ that the new theatre could block the view opment of the centre would be in keep- of the Nikolai Church. However, the real ing with its historical appearance. An in- reason that the shell of the unfinished itial spark for the scheme was provid­ theatre at Alter Markt was pulled down ed by the “Potsdam Project” run by the in 1991 was because it had become Summer Academy for Young Architects ­increasingly unpopular with residents of the Prince of Wales’s London Insti­tute and policymakers, being one of the last of Architecture (“The Prince of Wales’s major projects of the SED regime, and Urban design task Force, Potsdam and people saw an opportunity to restore the Bornstedt 1996”). An association for the area to its original appearance. reconstruction of the Fortunaportal was With the demolition of the theatre in set up on 25 March 1999. After the dem- 1991, the City Palace site once again re- olition, all that remained of the gate were verted to open parkland and years of de- the foundations and a few soil-covered bate on how to revive the centre of Pots- floor slabs. Traditional building tech- dam ensued. Mindful of the experiences niques and intact original parts were during the GDR era, voices increasingly used in the reconstruction. The ground- called for the restoration of the City Pal- breaking ceremony was held on 8 Sep-

12 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING Since a new building needs an occu­pant and the inadequate housing of the Land Parliament was at the time plain for all to see, the connection was made fairly­ ­rapidly in the public mind. Given that ­there were more pressing problems in the new federal state, the MPs bided their time with a decision that would entail­ mas­sive costs “for their own ­benefit”. The options looked at by the cost analysis thus also included refurbishing the Brau- hausberg building, and a new building­ either in Potsdam’s warehouse district The Fortuna once again highlighted against the Potsdam sky along the Havel River or on the site of an indoor swimming pool. However, the number of members in favour of a new tember 2000 and the official inaug­ura­tion building on the site of the former City took place on 12 October 2002. ­Palace grew steadily. A 2 June 2001 report in the Berliner- In 2001, the City arranged for a pre- Zeitung stated: “Television presenter liminary archaeological survey to be car- Günther Jauch hopes to carry on until the ried out on parts of the former Palace, the old Potsdam City Palace is re­stored at its first one since its demolition. Investigat- original location.“ 4 The people of Pots- ing an area of nearly 1,000 square me- dam were particularly grateful to Jauch, tres, a 12-person team found evidence of a staunch supporter of Potsdam, and to over 700 years of building history. A rela- Jürgen Lose, from the Federal Associati- tively extensive section of the preserved on of the German Cement Industry whose structures of the City Palace and of its ar- generous donations had made rebuilding chitectonic predecessors was examined the Fortunaportal possible. Realising this in the process. Given the good condition project rekindled the hope of actually im- of the archaeological finds, the monument plementing the City Assembly’s 1999 re- conservationists suggested preserving as solution which had declared the centre many of the artefacts as possible and to of Potsdam to be a redevelopment area, integrate them into the redevelopment of with the aim of “redeveloping the former the area. City Palace to an approximation of its Also in 2001, during the Federal Gar- historical size and layout, and its subse- den Show the special display “Minervas quent use by the public”. Mythos” (Minerva’s Myth) exhibited the original parts, plans and photographic documentation of the City Palace that had survived.

4 Julia Schmidt, Berliner Zeitung of 2.6.2001

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 13 8. Policy Decision drawn up in such a way as to ensure that no expenses for building works Tensions grew when the Landtag passed are incurred before 2004. a resolution on its permanent home on 5. Companies based in the region are to 12 July 2001 whilst leaving open the be involved in the planning, execution question of its location: 5 and monitoring of the project as far “After weighing up the political, as possible, within permissible legal financial and town-planning aspects of limits. a permanent home, the Landtag advo­ 6. The plans must ensure that the new cates the construction of a new par- parliament building may also be used liament building in the state capital of by the parliament of a joint federal Potsdam under the following conditions: state of Brandenburg-Berlin.” 1. The Land government shall, after hav­ Likewise, in July 2001, the city of Pots- ing taken due note of available doc- dam created the conditions required un- uments and reports, prepare a mod- der planning law for a new building by el for the Landtag offering options in drawing up a Land development plan en- terms of possible sites for a new par- titled “Potsdamer Stadtschloss” (Pots- liament building ready for subsequent dam City Palace). adoption. After the Landtag elections, the SPD 2. Should Brauhausberg not be includ­ and CDU coalition agreement stipulated ed in a concept for a new building, that “…the accommodation of the Land- the Land government shall provide tag must be lastingly improved”. In March the Landtag with a concept for its fu- 2005, the Ministry of Finance presented ture use so as to result in a concen- a report on behalf of the Landtag giving tration of properties for government a cost breakdown and a site comparison activities on the one hand and a sub- for the redevelopment of the Brauhaus- stantial reduction in rental costs to berg and a new building at Alter Markt. Land authorities for properties not On 20 May 2005, the Landtag finally owned by the Land on the other. passed a definite resolution on the prob- 3. To secure the investment, the Land lem of its location: 6 a new Landtag was to government and the Court of ­Audit be built by 2011 within the perimeter and shall act in close cooperation to outlines of the historical Potsdam City ­review available private financing Palace. The city of Potsdam was asked and the use of private management to carry out the necessary preliminary­ models.­ work and thereafter sell the site to the 4. With a view to consolidate Land bud- Land. There was an initial lack of ­clarity gets, only the requisite planning concern­ing the design of the build­ funds and – where necessary – funds ing ­although a budget limit of 80 million for property acquisitions may be dis- ­Euros was to be observed in any case. bursed until 2004. The plans must be

5 See printed Landtag matter 3/2991-B. 6 See printed Landtag matter 4/1092-B.

14 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING On the basis of a layout and function of the former City Palace” was 24,172, schedule agreed with the Presiding or 42.8 %. Only 7,212 respondents, or ­Committee of the Landtag on 16 Novem- 12.8 %, expressed a preference for the ber and 7 December 2005, the Ministry of site of the former “Palais Barberini” at ­Finance commissioned a feasibility study­ Alte Fahrt. The location at the “Speicher- designed to assess the practicalities stadt” (warehouse district) was favoured­ of the size and functional requirements by 16,089 respondents or 28.5 %, and of the Alter Markt site. The study was an entirely different site by 8,287 or 14.7 also to examine the conflict of interest % of those polled. A total of 56,473 Pots- ­between the desire to recon­struct the dam ­citizens took part in the public Palace and the requirements for run- ­survey, equating to 46.1 % of the 122,407 ning­ a modern parliament. The city residents­ entitled to vote. The then ­February 2006 findings showed that a ­Mayor, Jann Jakobs, declared: “I take this fully functioning modern parliament build- ­extremely high number of responses as a ing was possible while at the same time sign that there is a keen interest in the preserv­ing the original proportions and ­layout of Potsdam’s historical town centre permitt­ing a historically faithful reconstruc- and that citizens feel responsible for tion of the northern head-end section. their city and want to be involved. It has Initially, only the northern section on ­become clear that urban development Alter Markt was to be modelled on the should go hand in hand with a new Land- original. This displeased many Potsdam tag building. This is also a call to action for city councillors responsible for approving the City assembly.” the development plan. A similar ­dispute Meanwhile, supporters of the old City broke out among city residents as well Palace continued to campaign for the orig- as among the policymakers in the Pots- inal façade and started donation drives. dam City Assembly (Stadtverordnetenver- The Landtag resolution of 20 May 2005 sammlung) between those supporting the stated that the new building project original and those in favour of a modern should take the form of a public-­private façade. In spite of the clear choice as the partnership (PPP). In accordance with the site of the new Landtag, the Alter Markt rules of procedure of the Land govern- location was once again in question and ment, the Minister of Finance was put in the Project at a serious risk of failing. charge of implementing the arrange- ment. The ongoing discussions placed the Minister under significant time pres- 9. Fight of Potsdam’s Citizenry for sure during the contract award proce- “Their Palace” dure. On 27 November 2007, Rainer The findings of a public opinion poll Speer, the ­Minister of Finance at the time, among Potsdam’s citizenry between 16 and Prof Hasso­ Plattner issued a public and 31 December 2006 were clear: the announcement that the Hasso Plattner number of those in favour of the “site in Trust had donated 20 million Euros to the centre of Potsdam on the grounds the Land of Brandenburg. In the light of

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 15 the public debate, the agreement stated 2011 after a number of interruptions. Nu- that the donation was “to be used to en- merous, often surprising findings dating sure that the Landtag building conforms from the mesolithic period up to the time to the great­est possible extent to the of its last occupancy were made in the structure and appearance of the histori- process. Neolithic graves and earthworks, cal outer façade of the Potsdam City Pa- a Germanic settlement where iron was lace, using existing original construction smelted, the remains of crop sites dating components, and replicas if necessary.” back to the slavic fort of “Poztupimi”, a Whilst this donation was good news, previously undiscovered medieval defen- it also required amending the tender doc- sive system with a wooden tower and uments correspondingly. This allowed moat, and completely new findings re- meeting the wishes of many Potsdamers lating to the castle and palace complex unhappy with a modern façade. When re- from the 16th–18th centuries were exam­ constructing the façade, the plan was to ined and documented by archaeologists. incorporate fragments of the original build­ Foundations of the castle and palace ing fabric – including some large original complex over an area of around 3,000 sculptures – that had survived demolition. square metres below the new Landtag The Royal BAM Group consortium of building and in the inner courtyard have bidders under architect Prof Peter Kulka remained intact. Together with architect was awarded the contract. The project Prof Peter Kulka, the then Landtag Pres- agreement which provides for special ident Gunter Fritsch, Minister President financing under a public-private partner- Matthias Platzeck, Finance Minister Dr ship was signed on 2 September 2009. Helmuth Markov and Mayor Jann Jakobs The investor was commissioned with the a groundbreaking ceremony was held planning, construction, financing and on 25 March 2010. operation of the Landtag building for a The foundation stone was laid on period of 30 years. In return, the inves- 16 February 2011 in the presence of tor receives contractually agreed instal- Prof Hasso Plattner who in November­ ments and fees for building management 2011 had funded the replacement of from the time the building is handed over. the proposed zinc roof with a ­copper ­Under the provisions of the agreement, roof modelled on the original. The the Land will remain the owner of the topping-out­ ceremony was held in the ­property throughout the entire term. north wing on 24 November 2011.

10. The new Landtag Takes On 11. The Ceremonial Handover of Keys Shape to the Parliament’s ­President The preliminary archaeological survey of After three-and-a-half years of construc- the City Palace site which covers an area tion, the new building was handed over of around 15,000 square metres began to the Landtag President by the Minister in 2006 and was completed in January of Finance on 10 October 2013.

16 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING View of the construction site for the new Landtag building

The President praised the work of the ar- chitect who, he said, had succeeded in implementing the compromise solution of erecting a modern Landtag in a histor- ical shell in a masterly fashion.

12. Architect and Building Design Potsdam, 10 October 2013: Landtag President Gunter Fritsch (centre left) receives the symbolic Prof Peter Kulka faced the enormous transponder key to the new Landtag building. From left to right: Land Court of Audit President Christoph challenge of having to accommodate the Weiser; Elona Müller-Preinesberger, Deputy Mayor of substantially larger dimensions of the Land- Potsdam; Landtag President Gunter Fritsch; Finance tag building within the given cubic volume of Minister Dr Helmuth Markov; architect Prof Peter Kul- ka; Alexander Naujoks, CEO of BAM Deutschland AG the Palace. He nevertheless decided to re- construct the entire exterior of the Knobels- dorff façade including the inner courtyard. The architect also managed to design the The main building and the two side inner courtyard façades to match their wings were widened to accommodate historical models as far as possible even the plenary chamber, causing the inner though the building was given a totally courtyard to be reduced by a quarter of new floor plan. For functional reasons, its former size while retaining the original the changes to the inner courtyard are proportions, however. The combination greater than those to the outer façades of of historical and modern elements as well the building. as energy-saving considerations made it The shade of the red ochre select­ necessary for the outer walls of the build­ ed recalls the colour scheme typical of ing to be more than 1 metre thick. build­ings in 18th century Potsdam.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 17 Entrance Area and the Historical Staircase Prof Peter Kulka’s concept provides for entering the Landtag via the Fortunapor- tal and proceeding from there to the in- ner courtyard which is to be a citizens’ forum open to the general public. The entrance area of the building – known as the Knobelsdorff Staircase – was designed to resolve the conflict be­ tween the history-laden façade of the building and its modern minimalist inte- rior. A dispute arose about the design The Knobelsdorff Staircase in the new Landtag building of the historical staircase in June 2012 when the Mitteschön Action Group The four Atlas figures and panels built called for the original balustrade to be into the staircase are originals. The archi- reinstalled. tect insisted on retaining the figures in Prof Kulka on the other hand pre- unrestored state so as not to erase the sent­ed the Landtag Arts and Amenities traces of their history. Commission with plans for a curved white On the ground floor of the main wall with a bronze handrail instead of the building, the southern section of the forged cast-iron balustrade of the origi- Landtag lobby contains the exhibition nal Knobelsdorff Staircase, and the Com- area, cafeteria, cloakroom as well as mission adopted his proposal. Although rooms for visiting groups and press con- it had previously been announced that ferences, and the Land Press Confer- the staircase would as far as possible re- ence, which is also now housed in the tain the historical style and use original Landtag building. The floor of the left of elements, the House was swayed by the these three multi-purpose rooms fea- architect’s argument that the staircase tures an archaeological window under marked the transition between the his- a 4.2 x 8 metre glass panel revealing torical Knobelsdorff façade outside and part of the Swedish limestone floor from the modern parliament within, or, to use the 1660s in what was then the Garden his own words, “the transition to the plain Room and later a wine cellar during the and simple world”. rule of the Electors. Another reason for the decision Directly above, on the first floor, was the safety concerns voiced over in- lies the centrepiece of the building, the stalling the remaining sections of the orig- plenary chamber (formerly the Ballroom / inal balustrade. By contrast, even at the Marble Hall), together with the area of the advanced stage it still proved possible Presidency which houses the office of the to reinstate the historical vaulted ceiling. Landtag President. A heated dispute was

18 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING West wing The ground floor of the West Wing is home to the parliamentary department of the Landtag administration. Located directly above on the first floor, are the main rooms of the SPD parliamentary fraction with the group and committee room in the head-end of the building facing southwest. The second floor houses the parlia- mentary fraction DIE LINKE, likewise with a large committee room which also functions as a group meeting room. This layout is repeated on the third Presentation of the white eagle originally installed in floor which is occupied mainly by the the Plenary Chamber CDU parliamentary fraction. caused by the decision of the Landtag Arts and Amenities Commission to follow East wing the architect’s suggestion of mounting a The ground floor of the East Wing houses white eagle in the plenary chamber rather the administrative department of the Land- than a red one as is the emblem of the tag, while the first floor is home to the Land of Brandenburg. While the CDU par- parliamentary group BÜNDNIS 90/DIE liamentary group tabled the motion at the GRÜNEN and further administrative offices. Plenary to have the white eagle then in- The second floor houses the offices stalled above the bronze door replaced of the AfD parliamentary group. by the state coat of arms, the majority re­ The third floor is home to additional solved on 15 May 2014, at the request offices of the AfD parliamentary group as of the government supporting coalition well as those of the BVB/FREIE WÄHLER and after consulting the architect, to take parliamentary group. down the white eagle and install a red one with the lettering “Landtag Brandenburg“ on the lectern. 7 The second floor houses a visitor’s gallery and two press galleries. An office for the current Minister President and the RBB public broadcaster premises are also located on this floor. The fourth floor houses the Landtag canteen which seats 160 people, a large terrace and a library.

The lectern in the plenary chamber since August 2014 7 See printed Landtag matter 5/9021-B.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 19 The east wing façade viewed from the inner courtyard

3. The New Building and Surroun- According to the agreement that was ding Areas in Facts and Figures reached in April 2014 between the Land- tag President, the Lord Mayor of Potsdam, Construction Costs the Director-General of SPSG and the € 119,7 mio. Potsdam City Palace Association, to im- plement the resolutions on Landtag recon- Façades and Monuments struction, a concept is to be worked out The façades were modelled on the origi- for the gradual restoration and re-erection nal building and again feature ornamental of the figures on the outer façades. The sandstone decorations. Some 307 original realization of the concept is also depend- parts of the Palace (remnants) were incor- ent on the success of the Potsdam City porated. The western side of the outer fa- Palace Association to secure the neces- çade bears an inscription in gold lettering sary funding by way of donations. Since with the words “Ceci n’est pas un château” the reopening of the Palace, five Attica fig- (This isn’t a palace), expressing an idea of ures have been returned to the roof, and Potsdam artist Annette Paul. a group of eagles has been positioned on The parapets of the outer façades the Fortuna Gate. 8 were designed and equipped to take existing decorative sculptures as well as Inner Courtyard additional figures to be recreated in The inner courtyard of the former Pots- keep­ing with the original models. Origi- dam City Palace covered an area of 6,325 nally, the parapets housed 76 sculp­tures square metres; the courtyard of the new of heroes and gods of antiquity, the so- Landtag Brandenburg occupies around called Attica figures. 4,800 square metres on a plot size of Several surviving Attica figures are lo- 11,500 square metres. The courtyard is cated in the sculpture repository of the Ber- the site of two illusionist pavillons de­ lin-Brandenburg Castle and Gardens Herit- rived from the central oval of Sanssouci age Foundation (SPSG) while another eight have been on permanent loan on the roof of 8 Humboldt University at Berlin since 1966. Also see the website of the association, http://www.stadtschloss-potsdam.org.

20 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING The public inner courtyard

Castle by Cologne artist Florian Dom- Utility Area bois who won the first prize of the 2011 The building’s utility area, including the Percent-for-Art-Contest (Wettbewerb underground car park, measures around “Kunst am Bau”). 9 The inner courtyard 19,000 square metres, its gross cu- which is surroundedby magnificent fa- bic volume around 150,632 cubic me- çades in keeping with the original ap- tres and its gross floor space around pearance thus remains largely free of 34,525 square metres. The building meas- any structural impediments. The in- ures about 94 × 123 metres and has a ner courtyard open to the public, the height of approximately 21.40 metres. sweeping entrance area and the roof ter- The building has a total of 390 office race emphatically underline the Landtag workstations. The underground car building’s claim to be an open house for park has 166 parking spaces (including all citizens. 9 park­ing bays for the disabled) and 100 parking spaces for bicycles. Plenary Chamber The centrepiece of the Landtag is the Royal Stables and Wrestlers’ 472 square metres plenary chamber. Colonnade It provides seating for 88 members, as The Palace complex also included the well as a further 33 seats for government royal stables which today are home to members, the Landtag administration the Potsdam Film Museum. The stables and stenographers. It also has a gallery were built in 1685 as an orangery to the for 160 visitors. In the event of a merger west of the former City Palace in the his- of the states of Brandenburg and Berlin torical centre of Potsdam, and are the coming about, the existing 88 parliamen- city’s oldest preserved structure. tary seats can be extended to accommo- They were given their modern-day form date a possible 150 members. in the 18th century by master builder Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff. He extended and improved the building 9 Also see the pamphlet Kunst am Bau for the Bran- which had by then been converted into denburg Landtag from the Landtag Brandenburg horse stables for Prussian royalty. publication series.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 21 It was not possible for the full length of the Wrestlers’ Colonnade to be reinstat- ed on the original site, however, because a tram line now runs between the stables and the Landtag building.

Otto-Braun-Square Under the patronage of then Landtag President Gunter Fritsch, a project was inaugurated in memory of Otto Braun. Except for brief interruptions, from 1920 – 1932/33 Otto Braun was the Prime View of the visitor gallery from the plenary chamber Minister of the Free State of Prussia in January 2014 which during his time in office rose to be- The stables were connected to the City come a “bastion of democracy” against Palace by the Wrestlers’ Colonnade. This its enemies from both the Left and the colonnade was erected in 1746 to a Right. It gave rise to both functionally design of von Knobelsdorff, and original- competent government institutions ly consisted of 14 pairs of pillars that ­staffed by personnel steady of princi­ple ­served as an open, clearly-demarcated and steeped in democratic values who pedestrian route set apart from the area of resisted upcoming National Socialism up the pleasure gardens. The colonnade got to the end. its name from the eight groups of wrest- On 19 December 2012, the Munic- lers and fencers created by famous­ Pots- ipal Assembly of Potsdam resolved to dam sculptors and erected between pairs name the open square between Land- of pillars. tag, Lange Brücke and Alte Fahrt within Approximately half of the length of urban redevelopment area SAN-P13 and the Wrestlers’ Colonnade was de­ resulting from the new Landtag construc- stroyed in the British air raid on Potsdam. tion “Otto Braun Square“. This was the After the demolition of the City Palace first time that the democratic traditions of ruins, the preserved section was moved Prussia were publically recalled here in a few hundred metres from its original Potsdam. spot, near today’s Mercure hotel. It then On 19 March 2013, Lord Mayor stood on the edge of the “Neuer Lustgar- Jann Jakobs, Landtag President Gunter ten” (New Pleasure Garden) alongside Fritsch, State Prime Minister Matthias the “Neptunbecken” (Neptune Basin) Platzek and the Chairman of the Munic- near the landing pier of the White Fleet. ipal Assembly Peter Schüler officially In 2016, the remaining part of the unveiled a signboard on the banks of Colonnade was returned to its original the Havel River between Lange Brücke location. It consists of six pairs of pillars and the newly risen Landtag bearing the and four groups of wrestlers or fencers. words “Otto Braun Square“.

22 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LANDTAG BUILDING The project was successfully comple- of the new state parliament, there can be ted on 30 September 2013 with the no more appropriate name than that of display of a bust of Otto Braun for the the great democrat Otto Braun. His life new square and an accompanying publi- and work represents a major part of our cation detailing the life and times of Otto democratic tradition which today we Braun. 10 The bust is a replica of the Otto must once again defend against extrem­ Braun bust erected in the Otto Braun Hall ism from the Right. With its historical of Berlin State Library Building on Pots- shell and modern interior, the new Land- damer Strasse. Following the completion tag will act as the focus of parliamentary of the new square, the bust was installed consensus for the Land as a whole and a there permanently in November 2016. point of attraction for visitors from near Landtag President Fritsch made the and far.” following comments about the idea of honoring Otto Braun by name: “For the open square created by the construction

10 See Manfred Görtemaker (publisher): Otto Braun. Ein preußischer Demokrat (Otto Braun, a Prussian Democrat). Berlin 2014.

THE LONG ROAD FROM CITY PALACE TO LANDTAG PALACE 23 Published by: Landtag Brandenburg, Public Relations

Author: Katrin Rautenberg

Edition: 3rd reviewed and supplemented edition, February 2020

Photographs: Landtag Brandenburg (p. 2, 7, 8, 13, 17, 19, 20, 21);

Bildarchiv Preußischer Kulturbesitz Berlin (p. 10); Erik Kemnitz (cover photo); Hans-Christian Schink (p. 18, 22)

Produced by: Bonifatius GmbH, Paderborn

This publication is published by Landtag Brandenburg as part of its parliamentary public relations work. It is available free of charge. It may not be resold. It must not be used for the purposes of an election campaign.

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