Dome

Looking north east towards the Brandenburg Gate; Pariser Platz is a square in the center of Berlin, situated by the Brandenburg Gate at the end of the Unter den Linden. Created under Friedrich Wilhelm I, until 1814 the square was known simply as Quarrée or Viereck (the Square). The square is named in honor of the anti-Napoleon Allies' occupation of Paris in March 1814. Before World War II, Pariser Platz was the grandest square in Berlin, flanked by the American and French embassies, the finest hotel (the Adlon Hotel), the Academy of the Arts, and several blocks of apartments and offices. After World War II, the only structure still standing was the Brandenburg Gate. When the city was reunited in 1990, there was broad consensus that the Pariser Platz should be made into a fine urban space again. It is now a pedestrian space, closed to vehicular traffic. Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (accessed 4/26/2013)