Parochialkirche

Parochialkirche on Klosterstrasse is Berlin's oldest Reformed church, begun in 1695 to plans by Johann Arnold Nering and completed in 1714 with a bell tower by Philipp Gerlach. In World War II the building burned out to the outer walls, remained a ruin for decades and was only carefully reconstructed after reunification. The interior today is deliberately spare with exposed brick, white ceiling and a raised wooden gallery: a Protestant preaching hall stripped of Baroque ornament. In 2016 the tower received a new carillon of 52 bells, ringing several times a day. The church now serves as concert venue, exhibition space and a pocket of quiet in the noisy Mitte streetscape.