Great Hall

The Volkshalle (“People's Hall”), also called Große Halle (“Great Hall”) or Ruhmeshalle (“Hall of Fame”), was a huge monumental building planned, but never built, by Adolf Hitler and his architect Albert Speer. Hitler envisioned its completion in Berlin upon Germany's victory during World War II.

Great Hall in In the Presence of Mine Enemies
The Great Hall was completed by 1950, in part to celebrate Germany's victory over Britain and the Soviet Union. The dome reached 220 meters into the sky and was more than 250 meters across. Germany had plundered its conquests to pay for the Hall. It was designed to stand as a testiment to the Aryan race and to remind the German people that the individual was nothing compared to the needs of the people and the state.

Upon his death, Führer Kurt Haldweim lay in state in the Great Hall. Much of Berlin, including Alicia Gimpel's class, were allowed to pass through the Hall to see the body and pay their respects.

People who were old enough to remember Berlin before the Great Hall was built believed that the sheer size of the Hall had screwed up the city's whether patterns.