[ Home ] [ Up ] [ Travelogues ] [ Features ] [ E-Cards! ] [ Helpful Links ] [ Lists! ] [ About the Site ] [ About Us ]

Home Page > Travelogues > Germany > Bayern > King Ludwig's Castles (die Königschloßer)

Subchapters in this travelogue:  [ Herrenchiemsee ] [ Neuschwanstein ] [ Linderhof ] [ Hohenschwangau ] [ Nymphenburg ]

Funny thing about history... it has this incredible way of forgiving the transgressions of some of its grandest weirdos.

When asked about King Ludwig II, the designer of some of Bavaria's most famous landmarks, the typical Bavarian will probably respond glowingly.  But that was not always the case.  King Ludwig II was actually a pariah in his day, a paranoid man that squandered his family fortune, took the notion of 'privacy' to disturbing extremes, and died at a young age under rather mysterious circumstances.  He had also turned from the dashing lad in this graphic to a rather hot-tempered, obese, and unpleasant man.  But given that his castles have brought millions upon millions of Euros via the tourist industry, the Bavarians have long forgiven their once reviled king.

This travelogue takes you through all of Ludwig's castles, including those he built and those he lived in.  In the former category are Linderhof, the private retreat that was actually finished in his lifetime; Neuschwanstein, that argubly inspired Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom; and Herrenchiemsee, an unfinished palace on its own island in one of Germany's largest lakes.  The later are Nymphenburg in Munich where Ludwig was born, and Hohenschwangau where he spent much of his youth.  So, read along, then join of the millions of other visitors who flock annually to upper Bavaria to see Ludwig's castles in person.  Trust me, these pictures (while awesome) don't do these magnificent structures any justice!