Foundations of German history

Imre Karacs
Monday 19 April 1999 23:02 BST
Comments

1871 - Wilhelm I of Prussia is declared Kaiser of the German Empire. The Reichstag, meaning "Imperial Assembly", is convened under the restrictive constitution drafted by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. It holds its deliberations at a disused china factory in Berlin.

1884 - Construction of new Reichstag building begins, under the architect Paul Wallot.

5 December 1894 - Kaiser Wilhelm II opens the new Reichstag, describing the architecture as "the summit of tastelessness", and the building as the "Reich's Monkey House". Members have little influence on the government.

9 November 1918 - Germany lies defeated, Wilhelm II takes flight, and from a window of the Reichstag the Social Democrat politician Philipp Scheidemann proclaims the republic. A mile away, the Communist leader Karl Liebknecht declares a Bolshevik-style republic.

31 July 1919 - Fleeing the turmoil of Berlin, liberal politicians adopt a new constitution at a theatre in Weimar. Parliament returns to the Reichstag in the spring of 1920.

30 January 1933 - Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor. He never speaks at the Reichstag.

27-28 February 1933 - The Reichstag is set on fire, allegedly by Communists.

23 March 1933 - Hitler rushes through a law, making him dictator of the new Third Reich.

1933-1945 - The burnt-out Reichstag is restored, but is used as a tourist office for the 1936 Olympics and later as a maternity ward. Suffers severe bomb damage during the war.

30 April 1945 - Soviet soldiers hoist the Red Flag over the Reichstag.

1972 - First attempt to renovate the Reichstag, stranded on the eastern side of the Berlin Wall.

9 November 1989 - East Germany opens the Berlin Wall.

3 October 1990 - Reunited Germany is proclaimed on the steps of the Reichstag.

20 June 1991 - The Bundestag in Bonn votes to move the government to Berlin.

1992 - Sir Norman Foster wins the Reichstag renovation contract.

June-July 1995 - Christo wraps the Reichstag in silver.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in