The
Palace of the Republic in
Berlin was the seat of the parliament of the
German Democratic Republic (also known as
East Germany), the
Volkskammer (People's Chamber), and also served various cultural purposes. Located between
Schlossplatz and the
Lustgarten (referred to jointly as Marx-Engels-Platz from 1951 to 1994) on an island in the River
Spree, it also housed two large auditoria,
art galleries, a
theatre, 13
restaurants, a
bowling alley, a post office, and a
discothèque. On 23 August 1990, the Volkskammer ratified the treaty on
German reunification, which was later also confirmed by the
Bundestag in
Bonn. The building was constructed between 1973 and 1976 on the site of the former
Berliner Stadtschloss (City Palace), and was completely demolished by 2008 to make room for a reconstruction of the Stadtschloss, which began in 2013.