Rebuilding Munich

After the allied forces bombed Munich during World War II, destroying almost 80 percent of the buildings in Munich and some of Germany's other main cities, the city underwent an intense reconstruction period. Munich Destroyed This kind of devastation was at a scale unknown to the world during the 1940s -- yet, human adaptation and ingenuity demanded change to the new world. The undertaking was great: rebuilding an entire country. Walking the streets of Germany today, it’s easy to forget that much of the city was rebuilt after 1948. Munich was bombed a total of 71 separate times, leveling almost every important building in the city. The city was meticulously rebuilt, carefully omitting buildings that had significance for the Nazi party. The city’s approach to planning was to literally rise from the ashes. The rubble of the destroyed city was cleared to make way for new buildings that still stand today. Munich Rebuilt The reconstruction of Germany lasted well into the 1980s – barely reaching a phase of completion before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The reunification of Germany kickstarted even more building, plunging Germany into a state of self-renewal. Even while the city struggles to reinvent itself, the people of Munich have maintained the same planning over time. The quadrants that made up Munich in the 1500s remain relatively unchanged, perhaps a testament to Munich’s ability to look destruction in the eye and live to tell the tale.