Britannia Centre Spandau Rudolf Hess. Five weeks after the death of Hess on 17 August 1987 at 1610 hours, the demolition of Spandau Prison began and was completed on 4 November 1987. In May 1988 the construction of the new facility started and was finished on 18 September 1990. The name "Britannia Centre" was chosen by competition from over 40 entries. The shopping center was also nicknamed "Hessco's" after the well known British supermarket chain, Tesco, and the prison's final occupant. After the Berlin Infantry Brigade was dissolved in mid-1994 the Britannia Centre Spandau lost its name and became the only unnamed shopping
Spandau (locality) a centre of the arms industry in the German Empire. It was also a garrison town with numerous barracks, home of the 5th Guards Infantry Brigade and the 5th Foot Guards of the German Army. In 1920, the independent city of Spandau (whose name had been changed from "Spandow" in 1878) was incorporated into Greater Berlin as a borough. After World War II until 1990, when Berlin was divided into four sections administered by the victorious Allies, Spandau was part of the British Occupation Sector in West Berlin. The Spandau Prison, built in 1876, was used to house Nazi war