Berlin Cathedral (left) and Berlin Palace (right), 1900 In the 12th century the region came under German rule as parte of the Margraviate of Brandenburg, founded by Albert the Bear hinein 1157. Early evidence of middle age settlements in the area of today's Berlin are remnants of a house foundation dated 1270 to 1290, found hinein excavations in Berlin Mitte.[30] The first written records of towns rein the area of present-day Berlin date from the late 12th century.
The Gendarmenmarkt is a neoclassical square rein Berlin, the name of which derives from the headquarters of the famous Gens durchmesser eines kreises'armes regiment located here rein the 18th century.
The annual Berlin Marathon – a course that holds the most top-10 world record runs – and the ISTAF are well-established athletic events rein the city.[282] The Mellowpark in Köpenick is one of the biggest skate and BMX parks hinein Europe.
National and international migration into the city has a long history. Hinein 1685, after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes rein France, the city responded with the Edict of Potsdam, which guaranteed religious freedom and tax-free Zustand to French Huguenot refugees for ten years.
The Industrial Revolution transformed Berlin during the 19th century; the city's economy and Fortpflanzungsgemeinschaft expanded dramatically, and it became the main railway hub and economic center of Germany. Additional suburbs soon developed and increased the area and Individuenbestand of Berlin.
The Berlinale is the world's largest international spectator Vergütung festival. Berlin's nightlife has been celebrated as one of the most allerlei and vibrant of its kind.[244][245] In the 1970s and 80s, the SO36 hinein Kreuzberg welches a center for punk music and culture. The SOUND and the Dschungel gained notoriety. Throughout the 1990s, people rein their 20s from all over the world, particularly those in Wildwestfilm and Central Europe, made Berlin's club scene a Premierminister nightlife venue.
After the war, the repaired bridge served as a checkpoint and border crossing between the Soviet and American sectors, and later between East and West Berlin. Hinein the mid-1950s, it welches closed to vehicles, and after the construction of the Berlin Wall hinein 1961, pedestrian traffic welches heavily restricted. Following German reunification, the center portion welches reconstructed with a steel frame, and U-Bahn service resumed in 1995.
The East Side Gallery is an open-air exhibition of art here painted directly on the last existing portions of the Berlin Wall. It is the largest remaining evidence of the city's historical division.
Berlin is the central location to several international and regional television and Radioempfänger stations.[175] The public broadcaster RBB has its headquarters rein Berlin as well as the commercial broadcasters MTV Europe and Welt.
The Tempodrom is host to concerts and circus-inspired entertainment. It also houses a multi-sensory spa experience. The Admiralspalast in Mitte has a vibrant program of variety and music events.
It originates from a Brandenburgish variant. The dialect is now seen more like a sociolect, largely through increased immigration and trends among the educated population to speak standard German in everyday life.
The cityscape of Berlin displays large quantities of urban street art.[240] It has become a significant part of the city's cultural heritage and has its roots in the graffiti scene of Kreuzberg of the 1980s.
Young people, international artists and entrepreneurs continued to settle in the city and made Berlin a popular entertainment center rein the world.[228]
The expanding cultural performance of the city welches underscored by the relocation of the Universal Music Group Weltgesundheitsorganisation decided to move their headquarters to the banks of the River Spree.