The buildings of Ludwig II

As a follow-up to my post about Ludwig II of Bavaria, a post about the castles he built.

I think in his time, Ludwig might be seen in the same manner we regard someone like Michael Jackson, and his castles remind of MJ’s Neverland Ranch.

The most impressive castle is Neuschwanstein, which was built by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and as a homage to Richard Wagner.

Herrenchiemsee is the biggest palace, but nor very impressive compared to Ludwig’s fairytale-style castles.

The Linderhof is the smallest castle, and the only of his buildings that Ludwig saw completed.  You can clearly see how it was inspired by Louis XIV’s Versailles, in the shape of the castle.

The Königshaus am Schachen is, as the name says, more a house then a castle. It can only be reached after hours of walking. It was officially meant to be a hunter’s resort, but Ludwig used it to celebrate his birthdays.

Castle Falkenstein is a ruin Ludwig bought in 1883, with the intention to transform it into a fairytale castle. However since he died in 1886, the castle was never completed. This is how it was supposed to look when finished:

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Ludwig II of Bavaria

First of all, the Victorian Era blog was rated a 9.2 by Blogged.com. Thanks!

Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm II, King of Bavaria, (August 25, 1845 – June 13, 1886) was king of Bavaria from 1864 until shortly before his death. He is also referred to as the “Swan King” or “der Märchenkönig” (the Fairytale King.)

Ludwig ascended to the Bavarian throne at 18, following his father’s early death. His youth and brooding good looks made him wildly popular in Bavaria and elsewhere. One of the first acts of his reign was to summon opera composer Richard Wagner to his court in Munich. Ludwig had admired Wagner since first seeing his opera, and for the rest of his live he would be Wagners patron and a great influence on his works. King Ludwig lived in a fairytale world, so he felt at home in Wagner’s stormy operas about old mythes and sagas.

At the end of his life, Ludwig was declared insane by his family. Many historians believe that Ludwig was indeed sane, an innocent victim of political intrigue. Others believe he may have suffered from the effects of chloroform used in an effort to control chronic toothache rather than mental illness.

Mystery surrounds Ludwig’s death on Lake Starnberg (then called Lake Würm). On June 13, at 6:30 p.m., Ludwig asked to take a walk with Professor Gudden, the psychiatrist that headed the team of Ludwigs doctors. Gudden agreed, and told the guards not to follow them. The two men never returned. King Ludwig and Professor Gudden were found dead floating in the water near the shore of Lake Starnberg at 11:30 p.m.

Mystery! Suspense! Ludwig built many beautiful castles, but I’m saving those for a next post.

Here is an interesting website with an extended biography.
I haven’t read this book but it seems very promising.

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