Kulturbrauerei
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Berlin Kulturbrauerei (literally "Culture Brewery") is a 25,000-square-metre (270,000 sq ft) building complex in Berlin, Germany. Originally built and operated as a brewery, its courtyards and unique architecture have been protected as a monument since 1974. It is one of the few well-preserved examples of industrial architecture in Berlin dating from the end of the 19th century.
It operates commercially as a cultural center in the Kollwitz neighborhood of the Prenzlauer Berg district (Borough of Pankow), with support from the Treuhandliegenschaftsgesellschaft (TLG). It provides cinemas, theatres, clubs and function rooms. It is situated close to the Eberswalder Straße U-Bahn station.
In 1842, a pharmacist began using the location as a small beer bar.[1] Over time and varying ownership, the site grew into a full-fledged brewery, with the first proper brewhouse erected in 1871, the Schultheiss brewery.[1]
In 1887, the architect Franz Heinrich Schwechten redesigned and expanded the site using a medieval castle as inspiration.[1]
By 1891, it was acknowledged to be the largest brewery in Berlin; following a merger with Berliner-Kindl in 1921, it became the largest lager brewery in the world.[1]
In 1937, the company operating the brewery was declared to be a "National Socialist model company" and was subsequently nationalized.[1] During World War II, prisoners of war were forced to labor in underground cellars on the site manufacturing equipment deemed necessary for the war effort.[1]
At the end of the war, the site was occupied and entrenched by as many as 1,000 soldiers and loyalists, who defended the site even after Germany capitulated.[1] The building itself survived the war relatively unscathed.[1]
While the Soviets occupied the region, the brewery was seized and operated by the state as the VEB Schultheiss-Brauerei in 1945, before ceasing operation in 1967 due to equipment degradation.[1]
After reunification in 1990, the site was transferred to the Treuhandanstalt for redevelopment.[1]
