The King's Castles

Wednesday's adventure was my Must See on this trip to Munich and the Bavarian region of Germany. We rode the train from Munich to Füssen and then a short bus ride to the ticket office where tickets are purchased by hoards of visitors wanting to see the King's Castles.

I really enjoy taking train or bus trips on these adventures as they allow us to see the countryside. The fields and pastures are small and the villages quaint looking. We saw fields of corn and alfalfa and others grains/crops that were not familiar. The Alps are in the background of the above photo.

(Through the bus window) We also noticed wind towers in the countryside and several large solar panel lots. Southern Germany is predominately Catholic, often indicated by the onion dome churches. Northern Germany is considered Protestant.

Houses have tiled roofs, many of these also have solar panels. We noticed the solar panels especially on the farms. We saw people walking their larger dogs in the countryside. 

Schwangau and the Foggensee from the bus

We were somewhat concerned when we arrived at the ticket office to see the LONG lines for the afternoon tours. Guided tours are the only way to see the inside of the castles, and after traveling to Munich and to Füssen, I would have been very disappointed not to see them. OFD had been here about 15 years ago. Purchased tickets give the time of the tour. If you are not there to get your ticket validated during the tour time slot, you do not get into the castle. 

OFD and I noticed this little girl who was wearing her princess dress for her tour of the castle. I wonder if she was disappointed in the fairy tale castle?

the reason for the trip

Neuschwanstein Castle, the fairy tale castle 

Hohenschwangau Castle

Hohenschwangau was first built in the 12th Century by knights and belonged to the Knights of Schwangau until 1535. That fortification was destroyed by Napoleon during the Napoleonic Wars. Crown Prince Maximillian bought the ruins in 1832 and reconstructed the above castle. It was used as a summer home and hunting lodge by the royal family until 1912. Upon the death of his father, Maximillian II, the castle became the home of Ludwig II.

fountain in the courtyard 

courtyard between the castle and the annex

Ludwig the age of 10 and Otto at the age of 7,

lived in the annex to free up rooms and space in the castle

the Wittlesbach family took over the castle in 1923

they lived in the annex, now gift shop, until the 1970s

waiting in the courtyard for our tour time

the ONE allowed photo from  inside the castle

view of Alpsee (lake)

Hohenschwangau is built in the Neo-Gothic style and decorated in that style. Romanticism is the theme in all the wall paintings, which are original. Many gifts to the royals, the Wittelsbach family, are on display in the castle; many ornate, expensive and mostly useless gifts. This family ruled Bavaria for almost seven centuries.

fountain in the garden

Hohenschwangau was the boyhood home of Ludwig and his younger brother Otto. Ludwig is the King referenced in the title of this post. He became king at age 18 and dreamed of building more castles.

Ludwig was a romantic. At the time of his rule, Bavaria was weak politically, and rather than associate with Prussia or Austria and the politics of the Bavarian capital in Munich, Ludwig spent the majority of his time at Hohenschwangau entertaining poets, artists, and composers, especially Richard Wagner.

ornate swan on the rooftop

the swan and all the others within the castle honor

those original builders of the first castle

For 17 years Ludwig watched the building of this castle through a window from Hohenschwangau. Even though the main residence of the royal family was in Munich, and this was only their summer castle and hunting lodge, Ludwig commissioned the building of two more castles during his reign. He literally bankrupted the Bavarian government during his 22 years as king.

King Ludwig II was known as Mad Ludwig

and as Swan King and Fairy Tale King

this castle also known as Ludwig's Folly

view of the immense size of Neuschwanstein from Mary's Bridge

view of Mary's Bridge from Neuschwanstein

foot bridge over Pöllat Gorge

view from the lower courtyard

the castle is immense

built from 1869-1886

Although Ludwig spent 17 years building Neuschwanstein, he lived in it only 172 days. The castle had electricity, running water, and a telephone. Completed rooms include the throne room, the King's bedroom, library, writing room, dining room, and the Singer's Hall. Construction stopped after Ludwig's mysterious death.

we saw only 15 of the MANY rooms

climbed more than 300 steps

lots of construction going on

According to Rick Steves: During WW II Neuschwanstein took on a sinister role. The Nazis used this castle as their primary secret storehouse for stolen art. After the war, Allied authorities spent a year sorting through and redistributing the art, which filled 49 rail cars from this one location. It was the only time the unfinished rooms were put to use.

water fall in Pöllat River & Pöllat Gorge

Neuschwanstein as the sun is setting

such a beautiful castle from the outside

so dark and drab on the inside

You may be wondering how we got from one castle to another. OFD said there was NO shuttle service 15 years ago and the only option was the 30 minute walk. We had the option of a horse and carriage ride, walking uphill the distance (I don't know how far) or waiting for a shuttle bus which still gave us a 10 minute walk. Longer than 10 minutes for the two of us! I can't imagine if I had had to walk it. I'd still be there!

So glad I saw it. 

But, if I was a little girl in a princess dress,

I would have been very disappointed at the inside

of this fairy tale castle. Not at all how a fairy tale

castle should look. Walt Disney got it right.