We took a train trip some 20 miles from Berlin to Potsdam today. Lovely city, it was a royal vacation place. We learned of all sorts of Prussian romance, family angst and intrigue. Here are a few of the sites.

First, a few panoramas!

This is Cecilienhof, where the famed Potsdam Conference of Truman, Churchill/Atlee and Stalin met to hammer out how the Allies would administer the post-World War II world. Cecilienhof was built from 1914 to 1917. Soviet soldiers repaired the streets connecting Babelsberg to Cecilienhof before the conference. They built a bridge and did all of the landscaping, including that Soviet red star that Churchill and Atlee and Truman had to pass by each day. Inside, 36 rooms and the great hall were renovated and furnished with furniture from other Potsdam palaces. Click to embiggen:

Here’s another pano of sorts. This is Marmorpalais, or Marble Palace, is a Neoclassical palace that remained in the Hohenzollern family until the early 20th century. It was as a military museum under communist rule. After restoration in 2006 it is now open to the public. Click to embiggen:

This is the Babelsberg Palace. Built in the English Gothic revival style, it was built in two phases over the period 1835–1849. For more than 50 years it was the summer residence of Prince William, later Emperor William I.

Down a well-manicured, quiet little lane, are some bungalows you can rent. I choose this one:

This is a rear view of the Protestant Church of Peace in the palace grounds of Sanssouci Park:

Inside the church is an original Venetian mosaic from the early 13th century. The crown prince Frederick William purchased it at auction. The mosaic shows the enthroned Christ with the Book of Life, the right hand upheld in blessing. At each side stand Mary and John the Baptist. Next to them stand the apostle Peter and Saint Cyprian, martyred by beheading in 258 and patron saint of Saint Cipriana. The Latin inscript reads, according to Martin Luther’s translation: “Lord, I have love for the site of your house and the place where your glory resides.”

This is a copy of the 1839 marble statue created by Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen. You can see this statue in Copenhagen, Salt Lake City, Legoland and beyond.

Yesterday we saw the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. Here’s the Brandenburg Gate in Potsdam. It was built in 1770 and 1771 for Frederick II as a symbol of Prussia’s victory in the Seven Years’ War. (Hence the Roman triumphal influence.)

The story goes that Frederick II couldn’t settle on one architect, so he chose two. Each side, then, has a different aesthetic. The man that designed this side was a student of the architect who did the other side:

The Brandenburg Gate has been freestanding since 1900. Also at the gate, at your feet, is this representation of the Prussian eagle:

Frederick the Great wanted to grow plums, figs and grapes here, so he had a terraced garden installed here. The view was so nice, he decided, that he’d build himself a summer residence above his gardens. Just behind where I’m standing to take this photograph you’ll find Frederick II’s tomb.

Germans compare it to Versailles, though it is notably smaller. Built between 1745 and 1747, hence the Rococo, there were 10 original rooms. Things have been expanded over the years. The king wanted to be a man without a care, sans souci, he said. Hence the name, Sanssouci.

Saw this in downtown Potsdam. It was easily the sign of the day: