User:Rafaelfredyk01/Christmas markets in Berlin

History

Sale of Christmas baubles at the market on Alexanderplatz (1923)

The earliest references to events similar to Christmas markets date back to around 1530 and can be found in the municipal register of Cölln. These were first held in the streets between Petriplatz – Gertraudenstraße – Köllnischer Fischmarkt – Mühlendamm – Molkenmarkt – Poststraße and Heiligegeiststraße. According to Jutta Schneider, "stall holders were explicitly allowed to trade honey cake and other types of syrup based pastries at the Petriplatz and the fish market of Cölln in exchange for a stall fee of two Groschen a day during the Christmas season".

In 1750, the city council moved the trading, which originally lasted from 11th December to 6th January, to the Breite Straße. Later on the Christmas market expanded in the direction of the Schlossplatz and remained in the city center until 1873. Since 1872, 27th December has marked the end of the selling season. However, there have been repeated attempts to keep the market off the streets, as it led to significant traffic disruptions in the inner city. Furthermore, Breite Straße store owners feared the Christmas market would compromise their sales, saying the market was "a thoroughly obsolete institution for traders, not befitting the conditions and grandeur of the capital of the Reich anymore."

In 1873, the Lustgarten (Pleasure Garden) was chosen as the new location, but it was moved to Arkonastraße in 1891, with an interruption during World War I, because of safety considerations and the construction of the Berlin Cathedral. Between 1937 and 1945, shortly before the end of World War II, the market returned to the Lustgarten. During its peak there were up to 2000 merchants.