Karlsplatz

This guide to Karlsplatz in Munich starts with Elector Karl Theodor's 1791 order to tear down the city's old defensive walls, and the name officials gave the new square in his honor six years later. It traces what Munich did with that name instead, back to a tavern keeper named Eustachius Foderl who once ran a corner of this spot. It also turns to the Karlstor gate behind you, standing since the twelve hundreds despite a violent setback in its own past.