The Cold War
- After the Second World War, the Reichstag stood within the boundaries of West Berlin only a short distance from East Berlin, which during the 1960's was closed by the Berlin Wall.
- After the War the was little use for the Reichstag as the capital of West Germany had been swiftly changed to Bonn in 1949. There was much debate as whether to tear down the Reichstag but it was decided the building would be restored.
- Another architectural competition was held, and the winner was Paul Baumgarten who reconstructed the building for three years from 1961. The original cupola had to be demolished due to the extensive damaged it recieved during the allied bombing.
- During this time the parliament of West Germany were unable to assemble formally in West Berlin, and until 1990 the Reichstag was used only for representative meetings and for a permanent exhibition about German history.
