Marion-Gräfin-Dönhoff-Platz

Marion-Gräfin-Dönhoff-Platz lies in Berlin as an urban space where reconstructed historic structures meet the surrounding modern city. Spittelkolonnaden and a milestone obelisk give the square its most distinctive visual details.

The grounds began as an open area called the Esplanade before becoming a market square in the eighteenth century. The earlier Dönhoffplatz took its name from Prussian General Alexander von Dönhoff. Palais Hardenberg once stood nearby as a residence and office for important figures, including the Prussian Chancellor. Gardens and fountains reshaped the area in the late nineteenth century, under garden architects Hermann Mächtig and Erwin Albert Barth. Monuments to reformers Freiherr vom Stein and Hardenberg also stood here. War damage and demolition altered the surroundings during the twentieth century, followed by redevelopment in the 1970s. In 2010, the square received its present name in honour of journalist Marion Gräfin Dönhoff. The reconstructed Spittelkolonnaden preserve parts of the original southern colonnades, while “Meile Null” marks a former starting point for distances to Potsdam.