The Brandenburg Gate is a former city gate and one of the main symbols of Berlin and Germany. It was commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791. Because it was situated in the no man's land just behind the wall, it also became symbolic of the division of the city. After the Fall of the Wall, the Gate was reopened on December 22, 1989.