Leipzig Hauptbahnhof

Leipzig Hauptbahnhof is the central railway terminus of Leipzig, Germany, and at 83,460 square meters is the largest railway station in Europe measured by floor area. It was designed by the architects William Lossow and Max Hans Kuhne, whose joint entry won a 1906 competition against 76 other proposals, and opened on December 4, 1915 after construction that began with a foundation stone laid in 1909. The building was constructed with two matching domed entrance halls facing the street, one for the Kingdom of Saxony's railway administration and one for Prussia's, reflecting the dual ownership behind the station, and it originally held 26 platforms under six iron train sheds. Severely damaged in the Second World War, the station was fully restored by 1965, later gained underground shopping levels after German reunification, and was ranked the best railway station in Europe in 2021.