Deutsches Historisches Museum in Berlin

The Building

The Deutsches Historisches Museum (German History Museum) is housed in the Zeghaus, the old Royal Prussian Armoury in the center of Berlin.

The building is over 300 years old and the earliest on Unter den Linden Avenue. It is also considered the most prominent Baroque building in Berlin.

The temporary exhibitions of the museum are housed in a new spacious edifice with four floors and a hall made from glass and steel.

The Exhibitions

The permanent exhibit has a unique collection that represents over 2,000 years of German history. The collection has over 7,000 items and is displayed throughout the museum’s 8,000 square meters.

The exhibit is placed chronologically, making it easy for visitors to understand the main events of the last centuries. The museum is divided into the following areas:

• First Cultures and the Middle Ages (100 B.C.E – 1500)
• The Reformation and the Thirty Years’ War (1500 – 1650)
• The power of the Dynasties and the European Alliances (1650 - 1789)
• French Revolution to the Second German Empire (1789 – 1871)
• The German Empire to World War I (1871 – 1918)
• Weimar Republic (1918 – 1933)
• National Socialism and World War II (1933 – 1945)
• Germany occupied by the Allied forces (1945 – 1949)
• The division of Germany and reunification (1949 – 1994)

The museum offers interesting temporary exhibitions, all housed in the new building.

A History Masterclass

The Deutsches Historisches Museum is extremely interesting and full of information. It is the perfect place to learn about the eventful history of Germany, but it might not be very entertaining, especially for a holiday.

It will take at least a few hours to explore the museum and the labels are all in English.