Berlin - Crown Prince's Palace

(Local Name: Palais Unter den Linden) The Crown Prince's Palace at the beginning of Unter den Linden in Berlin was built by the architect Johann Arnold Nering in 1663-64 by converting an existing stately home. In 1732 it passed to King Frederick William I who intended it should be the residence of the Crown Prince and had it converted by Philipp Gerlach in the Baroque style. It was subsequently occupied by Prince August William, the brother of Frederick the Great and then by Crown Prince Frederick William and his wife Luise from 1793. In 1811 the master-builder linked the Crown Prince's Palace with the Princesses' Palace by means of a bridge. After further conversions had been made and floors added by Johann Heinrich Strack, the future Emperor Frederick III and his wife Victoria took up residence in 1856. This was where William II, the last of the German Emperors, was born on Jan. 27, 1859. The building suffered severe damage in the Second World War. As no plans and specifications were still in existence, Richard Paulick reconstructed it in 1968-69 with the aid of some old engravings, and it became a new culture center and restaurant under the name "Palais Unter den Linden." It was here that the Treaty of Unification between West and East Germany was signed on Aug. 31, 1990.

At the rear of the Palais is the historical "Schinkelklause" restaurant.