Berlin: A City Awaits

Abstract

Capital cities are symbols of both national identity and historical cognisance. They are "not only workplaces but stages for the visualisation of power" (Wise 1998, p. 15). As the apparatuses of significant cities, the public spaces and physical structures, which are the bedrocks of the governing state, have the potential to simultaneously inspire, amaze, isolate and intimidate global urban theorists. Whether it be Beijing's Forbidden City, Moscow's Kremlin, Washington D.C.'s Capitol Complex, or Berlin's Chancellery, there exists a central nexus between planning, architecture and political power.