Red for the bricks
The name has nothing to do with politics: it comes from the red brick of the facade, a nod to the brick architecture of northern Germany.
Urban Tales › Berlin › Red City Hall (Rotes Rathaus)
Red City Hall: the history, and a city told in terracotta
Berlin's mayor works in this red-brick building near Alexanderplatz, and its walls tell the city's history in clay. Here's what you're looking at, and what to listen for when you get there.
Built1861–1869
ArchitectH. F. Waesemann
Tower74 m
Frieze36 panels
Hear the Red City Hall (Rotes Rathaus) story, in the app's voice
A short preview. The full story plays on its own when you walk up to it with Urban Tales.
Three stories most visitors miss
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A history in terracotta
Around the first floor runs the "stone chronicle", 36 terracotta panels showing Berlin's story from its founding to the German Empire of 1871.
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Two city halls
In divided Berlin, this was East Berlin's city hall, while West Berlin was governed from Rathaus Schöneberg, where Kennedy said "Ich bin ein Berliner".
TipWalk around the building slowly and follow the terracotta panels like a comic strip of Berlin's history. With Urban Tales running, the city hall's story plays as you reach Rathausstraße.
Nearby landmarks
Red City Hall (Rotes Rathaus): common questions
Why is it called the Red City Hall?
Because of its red brick facade, not because of politics.
What is the Red City Hall used for?
It's the seat of Berlin's Governing Mayor and the Senate.
When was the Red City Hall built?
Between 1861 and 1869, designed by Hermann Friedrich Waesemann.