Tegel () is a locality (''Ortsteil'') in the

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

of Reinickendorf on the shore of Lake Tegel. The Tegel locality, the second largest in area (after

Köpenick Köpenick () is a historic town and locality (''Ortsteil'') in Berlin, situated at the confluence of the rivers Dahme and Spree in the south-east of the German capital. It was formerly known as Copanic and then Cöpenick, only officially adopt ...

) of the 96 Berlin districts, also includes the neighbourhood of ''Saatwinkel''.

History

The Tegel Palace (or Humboldt Palace), originally a

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...

manor house from 1558 and a hunting lodge of Elector Frederick William of

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 squ ...

, was bequeathed to the Humboldt family in 1797.

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 17696 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, naturalist, explorer, and proponent of Romantic philosophy and science. He was the younger brother of the Prussian minister ...

and

Wilhelm von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand von Humboldt (, also , ; ; 22 June 1767 – 8 April 1835) was a Prussian philosopher, linguist, government functionary, diplomat, and founder of the Humboldt University of Berlin, which was named afte ...

lived here for several years. In 1824 Wilhelm had the palace rebuilt in a Neoclassical style by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. In the park is a

tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

, where Alexander, Wilhelm, and other members of the Humboldt family are buried. From 1927 until 1931 Tegel Palace was the site of a

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal, make healthy'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, are antiquated names for specialised hospitals, for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often ...

, founded by the

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: + . is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a body of knowledge. In what might ...

Ernst Simmel (1882-1947). From 1898 on Tegel was the seat of the '' Borsig-Werke''

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the loco ...

manufacturing company until it moved to Hennigsdorf in

in 1931. Between 1930 and 1934 an

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

firing range in the district was used by the '' Verein für Raumschiffahrt'' (Society for Space Travel) for experiments with liquid-fueled

rocket A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entir ...

s. The principal names involved were its leader Rudolf Nebel and other staff members

Hermann Oberth Hermann Julius Oberth (; 25 June 1894 – 28 December 1989) was an Austro-Hungarian-born German physicist and engineer. He is considered one of the founding fathers of rocketry and astronautics, along with Robert Esnault-Pelterie, Konstantin ...

and Wernher von Braun. Tegel was the site of a

medium wave Medium wave (MW) is the part of the medium frequency (MF) radio band used mainly for AM radio broadcasting. The spectrum provides about 120 channels with more limited sound quality than FM stations on the FM broadcast band. During the dayti ...

broadcasting station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

from 1933 to 1948. A wire hung in a wooden tower served as an

antenna Antenna ( antennas or antennae) may refer to: Science and engineering * Antenna (radio), also known as an aerial, a transducer designed to transmit or receive electromagnetic (e.g., TV or radio) waves * Antennae Galaxies, the name of two collid ...

. This tower was demolished as part of the construction of Tegel International Airport at the end of 1948.

Today

Tegel is chiefly known for being the location of Berlin-Tegel ''Otto Lilienthal'', Berlin's former main

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

. It has a population of 33,417 and houses the

Tegel Prison Tegel Prison is a penal facility in the Boroughs and neighborhoods of Berlin, borough of Reinickendorf in the north of the German state of Berlin. The prison is one of the Germany's largest prisons. Structure and numbers Tegel Prison is a closed ...

, one of Germany's largest

prisons A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correct ...

with about 1,700 inmates as of 2007, known from

Alfred Döblin Bruno Alfred Döblin (; 10 August 1878 – 26 June 1957) was a German novelist, essayist, and doctor, best known for his novel ''Berlin Alexanderplatz'' (1929). A prolific writer whose œuvre spans more than half a century and a wide variety of ...

's 1929 novel

Berlin Alexanderplatz ''Berlin Alexanderplatz'' () is a 1929 novel by Alfred Döblin. It is considered one of the most important and innovative works of the Weimar Republic. In a 2002 poll of 100 noted writers the book was named among the top 100 books of all time. ...

. One of Berlin's largest

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually Anchor tenant, anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant pedestrian zone, a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that ...

s ''Borsighallen'' is located in the former locomotive manufacturing halls of the '' Borsigwerke''. There is also the ''Villa Borsig'' at the shore of Lake Tegel, the former residence of the Borsig family. Today it is a school for future diplomats. Besides this, Tegel is an extensive residential district with some industry. With the large Lake Tegel, set in woodlands, the locality is also a popular destination for daytrippers. It boasts Berlin's oldest tree, an oak called ''Dicke Marie'' ("Fat Mary").

Transportation

Tegel is served by the

Berlin S-Bahn The Berlin S-Bahn () is a rapid transit railway system in and around Berlin, the capital city of Germany. It has been in operation under this name since December 1930, having been previously called the special tariff area ''Berliner Stadt-, Ri ...

line S25 at the station ''

Berlin-Tegel Berlin Tegel "Otto Lilienthal" Airport (german: link=no, Flughafen Berlin-Tegel „Otto Lilienthal“) was the primary international airport of Berlin, the federal capital of Germany. The airport was named after aviation pioneer Otto Lilient ...

''. U-Bahn connection to the inner city is provided by the U6 line with the stations '' Otisstraße'', '' Holzhauser Straße'', '' Borsigwerke'' and '' Alt-Tegel''.

Gallery

Schloss Tegel1.JPG, Tegel Palace Tegel church Bernhard.jpg, Catholic church St Bernard Berlin - Humboldtinsel - 2017.jpg, Humboldt island in Tegel Dicke Marie.JPG, ''Dicke Marie'' ("Fat Mary") is a registered natural monument, said to be the oldest tree in Berlin.

References

External links