Platz der Republik

Platz der Republik lies in Berlin's government quarter directly in front of the Reichstag building and is today a large lawn, almost entirely green. It received its current name in 1948, recalling Philipp Scheidemann's proclamation of the Weimar Republic from one of the Reichstag windows on 9 November 1918; previously, from 1864, it was called Koenigsplatz after the court architect Friedrich August Stueler. Until 1873 the Victory Column stood on its southern side, before being moved to the Grosser Stern to clear the axis between Reichstag and Brandenburg Gate. Today the square works as a green forecourt of democracy, where tourists rest and school groups spill out of the Reichstag tours.