The immortal fairytale king is still present in the royal dreamscape: King Ludwig II. He grew up in the Füssen region, spent most of his life here and had a castle built like a dream - Neuschwanstein. Nowhere is the landscape more regal, the mountains and castles more majestic and the stories more mystical.

King Ludwig II was born in Nymphenburg Palace in Munich on August 25, 1845. His childhood was characterized by duties and deprivation. Ludwig and his brother spent most of their childhood at Hohenschwangau Castle, far away from the center of power in Munich. This suited the imaginative and sensitive Ludwig: The dreamlike natural landscape with the Tegelberg in front of the castle doors and the romantic murals of German fairy tales and heroic legends as well as the swan motifs inside the castle laid the foundation for his interest in nature and culture. Later, the fairytale king was to become one of Richard Wagner's greatest admirers and his patron.

All members of the royal family were nature-loving and enthusiastic hikers. They were always out and about in the mountains in the summer, especially on the Tegelberg and Säuling. The Tegelberghaus was a popular destination for King Ludwig II, while his father, King Maximilian I, had the Bleckenau mountain inn built for his wife Marie. The Fürstenstraße, often used by royalty, leads into neighboring Tyrol to the Schluxen estate. Today you can relive the history on royal hikes...

Das Foto zeigt das gelbe Schloss Hohenschwangau auf einer Anhöhe stehen. Es ragt wie eine Insel über dem Morgennebel hervor. Der Boden ist mit dichtem Nebel überzogen. Nur der ein oder andere Baumwipfel blinzelt schon aus dem Nebel hervor. Es ist Herbst. Die Blätter haben schon eine bunte Färbung. Es ist Morgen. Die Sonne scheint.

Das Bild fängt einen atemberaubenden Blick auf eine schneebedeckte Bergkette ein, die vom hohen Aussichtspunkt aus betrachtet wird. Die Perspektive ist von einem Balkon aus, der mit einer Reihe von Bögen geschmückt ist. Diese Bögen, aus Stein gefertigt, sind gleichmäßig gesetzt und verleihen der Szene ein Gefühl von Symmetrie und Gleichgewicht. Die Sonne scheint hell, wirft ein warmes Glühen auf die schneebedeckten Berge und beleuchtet die Bögen so, dass ihre architektonische Schönheit betont wird.

Schloss Neuschwanstein im April mit dem majestätischen Säuling im Hintergrund

The crown prince ascended the Bavarian throne on March 10, 1864 at the age of just 18. The time of sheltered retreat in the royal palace park landscape of the Füssener Land was thus abruptly ended. Hated by his ministers, loved by the people: that was the reality of the fairytale king. He increasingly fled from this reality into the fantastic dream worlds of his castles in wild mountain solitude. He made his dream come true: Neuschwanstein Castle, modeled on the medieval Wartburg. Two dream castles now lay at the gates of Füssen: Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau.

In 1886, King Ludwig II was declared insane and deposed. Neuschwanstein Castle was his last place of residence before he was taken to Berg Castle on Lake Starnberg. He died mysteriously in Lake Starnberg on June 13, 1886. The fairytale king never saw his dream castle completed.

Schloss Neuschwanstein mit Berglandschaft

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Want to find out more about the fairytale king?

If you would like to find out more about King Ludwig II, his history and his work, visit the two royal palaces and the Museum of the Bavarian Kings. Did you know, for example, that Ludwig's death is still unknown today?

Neuschwanstein Castle

Hohenschwangau Castle

Museum of the Bavarian Kings