This graceful square is bookended by two domed churches and punctuated by a grandly porticoed concert hall, the Konzerthaus. It was named for the Gens d’Armes, an 18th-century Prussian regiment consisting of French Huguenot refugee soldiers.
For a fabulous overview, sweat your way up the stairs of the tower (adult/concession €6.30/4.50) of the Französischer Dom, which also features a small Huguenot Museum (hugenottenmuseum-berlin.de; €8). Across the square, the Deutscher Dom (bundestag.de) hosts a free exhibit on Germany’s path to parliamentary democracy. A Beethoven symphony in the Konzerthaus (konzerthaus.de) is ear candy at its finest. Below the steps, a Friedrich Schiller Statue of 18th-century poet and playwright Friedrich Schiller watches over the square.
The surrounding area shows historic Berlin at its ritziest, dappled with luxury hotels, fancy restaurants and bars. In December the square makes a dazzling backdrop to a lovely Christmas market.
