History of Berlin, Germany. Berlin chronology

Chronology Berlin

“All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin. And therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words: Ich bin ein Berliner!” said John F. Kenendy in 1961 in the part of the city that used to be West Berlin then. Berlin has always played an important role in the world history and what happened there influenced other countries across Europe and beyond.

Early history
720	The region of the contemporary Berlin is settled by Slavic and Germnic tribes. They gather around the river Havel.
750	A locality named Spandow is founded near the river Havel. Later it is to be known as Berlin.
948	Germans take control over the area of the present day Berlin.
983	The Slavs run a bloody and largely successful rebellion against the German rule.
12th Century	Germans take over the land once again.
1244	Berlin is first mentioned in written records.
1247	The city of Cölln is founded near the already existent town of Berlin.
1307	The two cities are politically united and over time Berlin comes to be known simply as Berlin-the larger one of the two.

15-17th Century
1415	Frederick I becomes the elector of Margraviate of Brandenburg and rules from his headquarters in Berlin until 1440.
1448	Berlin receives the new royal palace from king Frederick II the Irontooth.
1451	Berlin becomes the royal residence of the Brandenburg electors and has to give up its status of a free Hanseatic city.
1539	The city becomes officially Lutheran.
1576	Nearly 5,000 inhabitants of Berlin are wiped out by the bubonic plague.
1618-1648	The Thirty Years' War begins and has a devastating impact on Berlin. One third of the houses are damaged and half of the city's population dies.
1640	Frederick William succeeds his father and initiates a policy of promoting immigration and religious tolerance. Berlin becomes an emblem of this policy.
1685	Frederick William offers asylum to the Huguenots. More than 15,000 come to Brandenburg and 6,000 settle in Berlin.

18-19th Century
1700	Berlin is a multicultural metropolis. About a quarter of Berlins' residents are French but there are also significant numbers of Poles and Czechs.
1701	Berlin becomes the capital of Prussia.
1740	Frederick II comes to power and rules until 1786. He turns Berlin into a centre of Enlightenment.
1806	Napoleon conquers Berlin but grants self-government to the city.
1861	Wedding, Moabit and several other suburbs are incorporated into Berlin.
1871	Berlin becomes the capital of the German Empire.

20th Century
1918	Berlin witnesses the end of World War I and the proclamation of the Weimar Republic.
1920	Berlin is established as a separate administrative zone with the Greater Berlin Act. A dozen of villages and estates are incorporated into the city to expand it.
1972	The film 'Cabaret' portrays Berlin during the 1920s with its liberal subcultures and fierce political street fights.
1933	Adolf Hitler comes to power after in 1933 the Reichstag building is set on fire.
1939	The beginning of World War II.
1938-1943	Thousands of Jews living in Berlin are sent to death camps.
1943-1945	Berlin is destroyed in air raids.
1948-1949	The Allies come to Berlin.
1949	Federal Republic of Germany is founded in West Berlin and German Democratic Republic in East Berlin.
1961	The tension between east and west culminates because of the building of the Berlin Wall and other barriers between the two parts of the city.
1971	Access is guaranteed across East Germany to West Berlin with a Four-Power agreement.
1989	Citizens are given free access across the Berlin Wall in November that year.
October 3, 1990	The two parts of Berlin are unified in the Federal Republic of Germany with the city as its capital.
1999	German government and parliament begin their work in Berlin.