The Carl Legien housing settlement was commissioned by GEHAG, an nonprofit building society, and built in 1928-1930 in the Prenzlauer Berg neighborhood of Berlin. It was named after labor union leader Carl Legien and prefigures the large-scale public housing estates that would be built around the world after Word War II. As in Taut’s other housing developments, the emphasis was on rational design, fostering social equality and communal openness, and providing access to sunlight and fresh air.