Unter den Linden (“under the linden trees”) is a boulevard in the Mitte district of Berlin, the capital of Germany. It is named for its linden (lime in British English) trees that line the grassed pedestrian mall between two carriageways.
Unter den Linden runs east–west from the site of the former Stadtschloss royal palace at the Lustgarten park, where the demolished Palast der Republik used to be, to Pariser Platz and Brandenburg Gate. Eastward the boulevard crosses the Spree river at Berlin Cathedral and continues as Karl-Liebknecht-Straße. The western continuation behind Brandenburg Gate is Straße des 17. Juni. Major north–south streets crossing Unter den Linden are Friedrichstraße and Wilhelmstrasse.
Since 1937, the numbering has started at the Schlossbrücke (Palace Bridge), connecting Unter den Linden with the Lustgarten and Museum Island. The disputed replica of the Alte Kommandantur is No. 1, vis-à-vis the Zeughaus arsenal, the oldest building on Unter den Linden, built between 1695 and 1706, today the seat of the Deutsches Historisches Museum (No. 2). Buildings along the street include (from east to west) the Kronprinzenpalais (former palace of the Hohenzollern crown princes, No. 3), the Neue Wache war memorial built in 1817 (No. 4), considered by many[who?] to be Karl Friedrich Schinkel’s masterpiece. Furthermore on Bebelplatz the Berlin State Opera (No. 7), colloquially called Lindenoper, St. Hedwig’s Cathedral and the Altes Palais (No. 9), favoured residence of Emperor Wilhelm I; in the north the main building of the Humboldt University (No. 6) and House I of the Berlin State Library (No. 8). On the western end are the Russian Embassy (former Soviet Embassy, No. 63-65) the Hungarian Embassy (No. 76) at the corner of Wilhelmstrasse and finally the Hotel Adlon (No. 77) at the corner of Pariser Platz, which has been completely rebuilt on the site of the prewar hotel. Well-known statues of Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt in front of the university as well as of the Prussian generals Scharnhorst and Bülow also adorn the street.
For an exclusive shopping experience in Mitte try the Friedrichrichstadtpassagen and its ‘Quartiers’. Quartier 206 for upmarket high-end international designer wear in an art deco atmosphere or the French emporium Galeries Lafayette, in Quartier 207. The spectacular building by Jean Nouvel is known for its stunning luminous glass cone in the entrance. More stores and a large food hall with abundant international specialties in Quartier 205 provide an ideal lunch-break stopover. The three buildings are located between the subway stations “Stadtmitte” and “Französische Strasse”.
