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

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

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 ...

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

manor house from 1558 and a hunting lodge of

Elector Elector may refer to: * Prince-elector or elector, a member of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Holy Roman Emperors * Elector, a member of an electoral college ** Confederate elector, a member of ...

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 square ...

, 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 after ...

lived here for several years. In 1824 Wilhelm had the palace rebuilt in a Neoclassical style by

Karl Friedrich Schinkel Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning. ...

. 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 ''immuremen ...

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

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek language, Greek: + . is a set of Theory, theories and Therapy, 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 bo ...

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 sieg ...

firing range A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, venue or field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice or competitions. Some shooting ranges are operated by milita ...

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 entire ...

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

Wernher von Braun Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( , ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German and American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS, as well as the leading figure in the develop ...

. 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 dayt ...

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 sta ...

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

with about 1,700 inmates as of 2007, known from Alfred Döblin'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 anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...

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 line S25 at the station '' Berlin-Tegel''. 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