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Matthäuskirche

Berlin

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Standing a bit lost and forlorn within the Kulturforum, the Stüler-designed Matthäuskirche (1846) is a beautiful neo-Romanesque confection with alternating bands of red and ochre brick and a light-flooded, modern sanctuary filled with artworks, including the floor sculpture Steps by Micha Ullman. A nice time to visit is for the free 20-minute organ recitals at 12.30pm Tuesday to Sunday. Views from the tower are free but only so-so.

German resistance fighter Dietrich Bonhoeffer was ordained a Lutheran minister here in 1931. A few years later the church was scheduled to be transplanted to Spandau to make room for Albert Speer's Germania, but then the war – and history – took a different turn. Alas, Bonhoeffer was executed by the Nazis on 9 April 1945, one month before VE Day.

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