The expansive Tiergarten is the oldest public park in Berlin. It is situated in the center of the city and boasts a large number of sights, including plenty of statues, memorials and even a palace.
The 2.5 square kilometers (about one square mile) Tiergarten is the largest park in the city. Its more than 23 kilometers (14 miles) of pathways make it popular with those who are looking for a leisurely place to stroll. For many years, however, the park wasn't open to the public. It began its life as the preferred hunting ground for the electors of Brandenburg. It was Frederick I, the first Prussian king, who opened the park to the general public, providing easy access to the Tiergarten by building roads and thruways. When Frederick II came into power, he hired George Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff (1742) to redesign the garden and give it a more Baroque feel. That survived for nearly a century, until Peter Joseph Lenné was commissioned to give the Tiergarten more of an English garden atmosphere.