Grey Friars Monastery

The Graues Kloster was the Franciscan friary in medieval Alt-Berlin, named for the grey habits worn by its monks. It stood where Klosterstraße now runs in Mitte. Before the Second World War it was Berlin’s most important medieval building. The ruins of its church were secured after 1945 and remain one of the last visible Gothic monuments in the city. The friars arrived in 1249 and built a large complex beside the margraves’ residence. They received land from the markgraves Otto V and Albrecht III in 1271 and a brickworks in 1290. The church and cloister were finished in the 14th century. Notable figures such as Ludwig the Roman were buried here, and the friars supported the city during the 14th-century interdict. Today only the church ruin is visible above ground. Archaeologists have uncovered the chapter house foundations, a field-stone base and parts of the cloister arcade. The site is a quiet green space where visitors can trace the outlines of the old buildings beneath their feet.