Standing a bit lost and forlorn within the Kulturforum, the Stüler-designed Matthäuskirche (1846) is a beautiful neo-Romanesque confection with alternating bands of red and ochre brick and a light-flooded, modern sanctuary that doubles as a gallery. Climb the tower for good views of the Kulturforum and Potsdamer Platz. A nice time to visit is for the free 20-minute organ recitals at 12.30pm Tuesday to Sunday.
German resistance fighter Dietrich Bonhoeffer was ordained a Lutheran minister here in 1931. A few years later the church was scheduled to be transplanted to Spandau to make room for Albert Speer's Germania, but then the war – and history – took a different turn. Alas, Bonhoeffer was executed by the Nazis on 9 April 1945, one day after V-E Day.
