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[[File:HF Schlossneubau Kuppel Berlin 090615.JPG|thumb|left|Reconstruction under way, 2015.]]
The driving force in ultimately achieving reconstruction of the Stadtschloss were businessman and aristocrat [[:de:Wilhelm von Boddien|Wilhelm von Boddien]]. Until von Boddien and his associates became involved, the Government had given no thought to rebuilding the entire palace.<ref name="whitney1993">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/12/arts/a-berlin-palace-stirs-in-its-grave.html|title=A Berlin Palace Stirs in Its Grave|last=Whitney|first=Craig R.|date=1993-07-12|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=2016-08-23}}</ref> In 1992 von Boddien co-founded with [[Kathleen King von Alvensleben]],<ref>Amid Squabbling, Berlin to Reveal Imperial Palace Design, DW, 27 November 2008[https://www.dw.com/en/amid-squabbling-berlin-to-reveal-imperial-palace-design/a-3823687]</ref> (an American architect who had married into a German noble family), what evolved to be the Berlin City Palace Sponsoring Association – which became the most influential lobby group. The Association accumulated plans that had been believed lost, and funded a research project at the Technical University of Berlin to measure surviving photos and drawings of the Palace to create precise architectural plans. In 1993, on the world's largest scaffolding assembly, it audaciously erected a ''[[Trompe-l'œil|trompe-l'oeil]]'' mockup of two frontages of the Stadtschloss facade on a 1:1 scale on plastic sheeting. Privately funded by donations and sponsorship this ''[[wikt:coup de théâtre|coup de théâtre]]'' stood for a year and half. Showing a vision of central Berlin lost for fifty years, and how the palace could provide the missing link to the historical ensemble of the [[Zeughaus]], the [[Altes Museum]], and the [[Berlin Cathedral]], the spectacle brought the debate to a temporary climax in 1993/4.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dw.com/en/berlins-city-palace-controversy-refuses-to-die/a-3924736 |title=Berlin's City Palace Controversy Refuses to Die|last=|first=|date=|website=Dw.com|access-date=2017-06-07}}</ref><ref name="whitney1993"/> While opinion continued to remain divided, it succeeded in winning over many politicians and other key figures for the endeavour.<ref>{{cite news|last=Oswalt|first=Philipp|date=1 February 2008|title=Das Stadtschloss-Geschäft|trans-title=The Berlin Palace Business|url=http://www.bauwelt.de/themen/betrifft/bw_2008-01_Das_Stadtschloss-Geschaeft-2098188.html|work=Bauwelt|access-date=2017-06-07|pages=7–8|lang=de}}</ref>
[[File:Wikipedianer im Humboldt Forum-17.jpg|thumb|right|Construction work, November 2018]]
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[[File:Berliner Schloss Panorama.jpg|thumb|right|Panorama of how the finished reconstruction will look.]]
Due to German government budget cuts, construction of the "Humboldtforum", as the new palace was titled, was delayed. The [[foundation stone]] was finally laid by President [[Joachim Gauck]] in a ceremony on 12 June 2013 signalling the launch of a €590M (£500M) reconstruction project.<ref name="12 Jun 2013">{{cite web |url =https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/10117103/Berlin-begins-reconstruction-of-King-Frederick-the-Greats-palace.html|title =Berlin begins reconstruction of King Frederick the Great's palace | author= Harriet Alexander|date =12 Jun 2013|work = |publisher =The Telegraph |accessdate =14 June 2013}}</ref> On completion in 2019 the building will house a modern museum containing collections of African and other non-European art, as well as two restaurants, a theater, a movie theater and an auditorium.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-12/berlin-palace-rebuilding-begins-63-years-after-explosion.html |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2017-03-06 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207211822/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-12/berlin-palace-rebuilding-begins-63-years-after-explosion.html |archivedate=2014-12-07 |df= }}</ref> Donations continue to be sought for the baroque facade decoration by Förderverein Berliner Schloss eV, which is funding this part of the reconstruction. In a congratulatory letter to Wilhelm von Boddien on his 75th birthday, the chairman of the board of the board of the Foundation Humboldt Forum wrote: "Without you, the castle would not exist."<ref>""Berliner Schlossherr" Wilhelm von Boddien wird 75", "Die Welt", 26 February 2017</ref> In 2018, a Berlin newspaper conceded: "Boddien comes from one of the longest and most annoying debates of the last 20 years, whether this Berlin needs a castle or not, as a grinning, even brilliant winner.<ref>Messmer, Susanne "Fast Fertig", Taz, 25 August 2018</ref>
==See also==
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