Bebelplatz

Bebelplatz Review

After he became ruler in 1740, Frederick the Great personally planned the buildings surrounding this square (which has a huge parking garage cleverly hidden beneath the pavement). The area received the nickname "Forum Fridericianum," or Frederick's Forum. On May 10, 1933, Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi minister for propaganda and "public enlightenment," organized one of the nationwide book-burnings here. The books, thrown on a pyre by Nazi officials and students, included works by Jews, pacifists, and Communists. In the center of Bebelplatz, a modern and subtle memorial (built underground but viewable through a window in the cobblestone) marks where 20,000 books went up in flames.

Staatsoper Unter den Linden. A music lover, Frederick the Great had the Staatsoper Unter den Linden as his first priority. Berlin's lavish opera house was completed in 1743 by the same architect who built Sanssouci in Potsdam, Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff. The house is currently undergoing a complete makeover, set to be completed in 2013, when the historic interior will be replaced with a modern design. The show goes on at the Schiller Theater across town, where maestro Daniel Barenboim continues to oversee a diverse repertoire. Unter den Linden 7, Mitte, Berlin, 10117. 030/2035-4555. www.staatsoper-berlin.de. Box office Mon - Sat 10-8, Sun 12-8. Französische Strasse (U-bahn).

Humboldt-Universität. Running the length of the west side of Bebelplatz, the former royal library is now part of Humboldt-Universität, whose main campus is across the street on Unter den Linden. The university building was built between 1748 and 1766 as a palace for Prince Heinrich, the brother of Frederick the Great. With its founding in 1810, the university moved in. The fairy-tale-collecting Grimm brothers taught here, and political philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels studied within its hallowed halls. Albert Einstein taught physics from 1914 to 1929, when he left Berlin for the United States. Unter den Linden 6, Mitte, Berlin, 10117.