10 8/2024

1809: Foundation of the Berlin University

The Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm III (1770-1840) founds a university for Berlin.

Prior to this, a number of academics such as Wilhelm von Humboldt and the theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher had requested the king to set up an educational institution. It was given the name Berlin University up until its renaming in 1828 to Friedrich Wilhelm University. In memory of the Humboldt brothers and their enlightening thinking, it was decided in 1948 to change the name to Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.