Throughout the ages and through to the present, Berlin as the seat of different ideologues and governments has become absolutely crowded with historic buildings and courtiers, though venue and use has evolved over the years. The grand city palace of Berlin was lost during World War II and the rubble has cleared away a long time ago, but there are long-term plans to rebuild the structure on the still vacant lot over the next decade. Such a project, I think, would bring the other fine and intact buildings of the city into sharper focus.
Politics and intrigue are ever stifling things, and in a great tradition of seeking refuge from the demands of the court and escaping for quiet and reflection, philosopher king of the Prussians, Fredrick the Great, designed and commissioned his retreat, San Souci (French for
Without Worries) among the vineyards outside of Potsdam.
A patron of the arts and sciences and a man of letters, under the advice of his long time friend and confident, Voltaire, he promoted reforms in bureaucracy and governance (including such revolutionary ideas separation of church and state and personal liberties) and followed the French philosopher’s maxims about immersing oneself in nature—though the wine business never really took hold. While enjoying the king’s hospitality at San Souci, Voltaire penned probably the first work in the genre of science fiction, with his short-story,
Micromegas.
Fredrick was a sensitive soul and never, I think, really aspired to be the military strategists that he became known as. Scholar and polyglot as well as visionary and diplomat, he left a substantial legacy that’s not only in his distinctive architectural penchant (found in many monuments populating Berlin and Brandenburg) but in many intangible footnotes of the age of Enlightenment.
Throughout the ages and through to the present, Berlin as the seat of different ideologues and governments has become absolutely crowded with historic buildings and courtiers, though venue and use has evolved over the years. The grand city palace of Berlin was lost during World War II and the rubble has cleared away a long time ago, but there are long-term plans to rebuild the structure on the still vacant lot over the next decade. Such a project, I think, would bring the other fine and intact buildings of the city into sharper focus.
Politics and intrigue are ever stifling things, and in a great tradition of seeking refuge from the demands of the court and escaping for quiet and reflection, philosopher king of the Prussians, Fredrick the Great, designed and commissioned his retreat, San Souci (French for Without Worries) among the vineyards outside of Potsdam. 
A patron of the arts and sciences and a man of letters, under the advice of his long time friend and confident, Voltaire, he promoted reforms in bureaucracy and governance (including such revolutionary ideas separation of church and state and personal liberties) and followed the French philosopher’s maxims about immersing oneself in nature—though the wine business never really took hold. While enjoying the king’s hospitality at San Souci, Voltaire penned probably the first work in the genre of science fiction, with his short-story, Micromegas. 
Fredrick was a sensitive soul and never, I think, really aspired to be the military strategists that he became known as. Scholar and polyglot as well as visionary and diplomat, he left a substantial legacy that’s not only in his distinctive architectural penchant (found in many monuments populating Berlin and Brandenburg) but in many intangible footnotes of the age of Enlightenment. 
