French Church

The French Reformed Church is a late work by the architect Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff. In the Edict of Potsdam, Frederick William of Brandenburg offered Huguenots who had fled France a new home in Prussia. Nearly 70 years later, the French Reformed congregation had grown so large that in 1752 it was decided to build them a French Reformed church. The "Temple de Potsdam," as it is known in French, still stands today not far from what is now Bassinplatz.

It suffered little damage during World War II, making it the oldest surviving church in Potsdam's historic city center. The church's interior is very simple. The oval church was designed by Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff, but due to Knobelsdorff's serious illness, Jan Bouman took over the construction. The Pantheon in Rome served as the model for the church's design.