Fernsehturm Berlin

The Fernsehturm (German: [ˈfɛʁnzeːˌtʊʁm] ⓘ; English: Television Tower) in central <a href="/facts/Berlin/pMTIRNXK">Berlin</a> was constructed between 1965 and 1969 by the government of the <a href="/facts/German_Democratic_Republic/PwI902Q6">German Democratic Republic</a> as both a functional broadcasting facility and a symbol of Communist power.
It remains a landmark today from its position next to <a href="/facts/Alexanderplatz/7pFhsrBJ">Alexanderplatz</a> in the city's <a href="/facts/Alt-Berlin/fW0PrMaK">Marien Quarter</a>, part of the district of <a href="/facts/Mitte_(locality)/wCFaCuNV">Mitte</a>, visible across most suburban districts of Berlin. With a height of 368 metres (1,207 ft) (including antenna) it is the <a href="/facts/List_of_tallest_structures_in_Germany/VwICgQ1D">tallest structure in Germany</a>, and the third-tallest structure in the European Union. When built it was the fourth-tallest freestanding structure in the world after the <a href="/facts/Empire_State_Building/GgehSMmV">Empire State Building</a> and the <a href="/facts/John_Hancock_Center/p9rF8haU">John Hancock Center</a>.
Of the four tallest structures in the <a href="/facts/European_Union/6GYcR8qM">European Union</a>, the Fernsehturm is 2 metres (6.6 ft) shorter than the <a href="/facts/Torreta_de_Guardamar/YUCRpWhY">Torreta de Guardamar</a>, one-half metre (1.6 ft) shorter than the <a href="/facts/Riga_Radio_and_TV_Tower/Mxfw1zR6">Riga Radio and TV Tower</a>, and 8 metres (26 ft) taller than the <a href="/facts/Trbovlje_Power_Station/cphowVoJ">Trbovlje Power Station</a>. The structure is also more than 220 metres (720 ft) higher than the old <a href="/facts/Berlin_Radio_Tower/LNzs3LTr">Berlin Radio Tower</a> in the western part of the city, which was built in the 1920s.

In addition to its main function as the location of several radio and television transmitters, the building – internally known as "Fernmeldeturm 32" – serves as a viewing tower with observation deck including a bar at a height of 203 metres (666 ft), as well as a rotating restaurant. Also, the Berlin TV Tower can be booked as a venue for events. The distinctive city landmark has undergone a radical, symbolic transformation: After <a href="/facts/German_reunification/1c7F6WoR">German reunification</a>, it changed from a politically charged, national symbol of the <a href="/facts/East_Germany/PwI902Q6">GDR</a> into a citywide symbol of a reunited Berlin. Due to its universal and timeless design, it has increasingly been used as a trademark and is identified worldwide with Berlin and Germany. In 1979, the Berlin TV Tower received official monument status by the East German government, a status which was perpetuated after the German reunification.
The tower has become one of the most prominent symbols of the country and is often in the <a href="/facts/Establishing_shot/vUan9LTn">establishing shot</a> of <a href="/facts/List_of_films_set_in_Berlin/YuuTg3Eq">films set in Berlin</a>, alongside monuments such as the <a href="/facts/Brandenburg_Gate/RvAXdl9y">Brandenburg Gate</a>, the <a href="/facts/Berlin_Victory_Column/7u8HwNjs">Berlin Victory Column</a> and the <a href="/facts/Reichstag_building/kx8lp9DG">Reichstag building</a>. It is also one of the ten most popular attractions in Germany with more than one million visitors every year.

Fernsehturm Berlin open-in-new

Fernsehturm Berlin