Since the time when Berlin was a medieval trading centre and Hanseatic town, its history has seen most varied and controversial, though mostly exciting and interesting developments. Berlin was an Elector's residence, the centre of the Prussian monarchy, the capital of the German Reich and later an industrial metropolis, a centre of culture and science. It turned into a ruined place after World War II, a divided, encircled and disunited town. Today, Berlin is a reunited, free and lively cosmopolitan city in a central position between the East and the West.
Berlin has to an ever greater extent developed into a business and service metropolis.
Presently, the city's outer appearance is characterised by breathtaking building activity. Huge construction sites with numerous cranes are symbols of the constructional and organisational changes taking place in Berlin. However, the city is characterised not only by work on construction sites, but also by other activities such as studying, researching, writing, painting and drawing, composing, playing instruments and putting on theatre plays. The scope of events offered by the Berlin cultural scene is excellent. They all compete for having the favour of the city's inhabitants and guests.