State Council Building, Government building in Berlin-Mitte, Germany.

The State Council Building at Schlossplatz 1 is a three-story structure with grey sandstone and red volcanic rock covering its steel frame. Rectangular panels of red rhyolite dominate large sections of the exterior walls, giving the building its recognizable appearance in the city center.

Built from 1962 to 1964 by Roland Korn and Hans Erich Bogatzky, the building was the first government new-build in Berlin's centre after the war. The State Council moved in from Schönhausen Palace in 1964 and sat here until 5 April 1990; Walter Ulbricht, Willi Stoph, Erich Honecker, Egon Krenz and Manfred Gerlach worked in it. From 1999 to 2001 Gerhard Schröder used it as his Berlin chancellery office.

The portal set into the facade is the historic Portal IV of the Berlin Palace, saved from demolition in 1951. It is not a Renaissance work but a baroque element, and it is not the entrance visitors use today: the building has housed the European School of Management and Technology since 2006. The portal's balcony is linked to Karl Liebknecht's proclamation of a socialist republic on 9 November 1918.

The building is now occupied by the European School of Management and Technology (ESMT Berlin), so its interior is not open to casual visitors. The facade, including the asymmetrically placed Portal IV, can be viewed from Schloßplatz and the surrounding streets. The gold inscription "STAATSRAT DER DDR" above the balcony is visible from street level.

The red rectangular panels on the exterior walls resemble banners in their shape and were intended to convey political symbolism. This design choice reflects how architecture can be used to communicate ideological messages.