Berlin: Unter den Linden - St. Hedwig's Church

In 1747 King Friedrich II ceded a free area behind the Opera to the Catholic congregation, which did not yet have its own place of worship in Berlin. In accordance with specifications from the king, Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff designed the central structure in imitation of the Pantheon in Rome. Johann Boumann the Elder took over the execution of these plans in 1747-73. In 1929, St. Hedwig's Church was elevated to a cathedral, the church of the bishopric of Berlin.

Bombings in March 1943 gutted the cathedral down to the enclosing walls. Its restoration in 1952-63 was planned by Hans Schwippert. The external architecture was restored to resemble its historical appearance; except for the dome, whose new concrete shell construction gave it a new silhouette.