Most of the city's historic buildings were destroyed during WW II, but some, such as the Römer (the old town hall) and the St. Paul's Church (the seat of the first democratically elected German Parliament in 1848) were rebuilt. The Commerzbank Tower, designed by Foster & Partners, was completed in 1997 and is the second tallest building in Europe. The third tallest building is the close-by Messeturm (Helmut Jahn, 1990).