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Legislative landmark a living memorial
 The reconstructed Reichstag has become one of Berlin's leading attractions. SPECIAL REPORT
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BERLIN, Germany (CNN) -- The walls of the Reichstag building -- the seat of the German parliament -- in Berlin have survived wars, fires and political upheaval, although not unscathed. Dating from the end of the 19th century, the imposing building symbolized the confident and increasingly powerful empire that had been created with German unification in 1871. But much of the building was destroyed in a mysterious fire in 1933 -- an incident used by Hitler, who had recently been named German chancellor, to press through legislation that consolidated his grip on power and set Germany on a path that would end with its defeat in World War II and the devastation of Berlin. Transformed into offices during the Cold War, it was only following the country's reunification in 1990 that the German parliament returned to its original home. In 1995 London-based architects Foster and Partners, headed by Norman Foster, were handed the job of restoring the building. Their intention was to design a building that reflected the optimism of a nation restored to the heart of Europe while also commemorating its past. "It was like writing an essay or a book because at every detail one had to consider what was new and what was old and how the relationship came together," lead architect David Nelson told CNN. A sense of history pervades the finished building, which has become one of Berlin's most popular tourist attractions, with the walls stripped back to reveal their 19th century finishes, and graffiti left by triumphant Soviet solders in 1945 still in place. "By carefully scratching away at the interior walls, being very sensitive and very careful in that process, we started to reveal that first of all there was a lot of existing masonry left with its decoration from the original building," said Nelson. "But we also began to see these human marks, like the graffiti. The human markings were something that was definitely a record of history and 200 years from now the value of that would be immense." While restoring the exterior, the Reichstag's interior was almost completely re-designed, with a 23.5-meter glass dome over the legislative chamber creating a new landmark on the Berlin skyline. The building also reflects an openness and accessibility not usually associated with the political process. From an observation platform in the dome visitors can witness proceedings in the chamber below, while politicians and members of the public all use the same formal entrance to the building. "We felt there was a unique opportunity for the whole experience of the parliament to be witnessed by people, not just through television medium, but actually by being there and seeing it," said Nelson. "The parliament building itself, rather than being a fortress could be something that was open and welcoming to the people that the parliamentarians represent. And all through the design, we were trying to finds ways in which that could be maintained." Widely hailed as an architectural triumph, the reconstructed Reichstag has given the German people a parliament for the future in a building that is also a living memorial to their past. 
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