Berliner Dom in Berlin

The Dom known in English as Cathedral is located in the Berlin district called Mitte on what is known as the Museum Island. It is a Lutheran Cathedral designed by Julius Raschdorff and constructed between 1895 and 1905. Historians recant that a church has stood on this site since 1465 – the first church was believed to have been a chapel for the Royal Family, the Hohenzollerns. In 1747, a Baroque style cathedral designed by leading architect, Johann Boumann was constructed, but by 1822, the cathedral was renovated to include many Neo-classical features, which were incorporated into the new design by architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel.

However, in 1894 German Emperor Wilhelm II ordered the demolition of this cathedral and work began on the domed cathedral which stands here today. On its completion the cathedral was far larger than any previous religious buildings in the city and was deemed to be a Protestant version to St Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Berliner Dom experienced severe damage from World War II bombing raids. A roof was hastily constructed to protect what was left of the building, but restoration work did not begin until 1975. The interior restoration began in 1984 and the cathedral was finally opened in 1993. Slight alterations were made to the original design to ease the workload of the restoration team.

Well worth seeing is the ornately decorated mosaic dome and the historic crypt, which contains over 80 tombs of the former Prussian Royal Family. The altar dates back to 1850 and was one of the items, which remained untouched by the bombing raids. The cathedral is also attractively decorated with stained glass windows by Anton von Werner, a magnificent Neo-Baroque pulpit and the renowned Sauer's Organ.