After a day of over-indulgence at Oktoberfest in Munich, we boarded a train to Füssen, a pretty little town in the foothills of the Bavarian Alps, ready to explore some fairytale castles. To set the historical context and cast of characters: At Oktoberfest, we had been introduced to the newly-established Bavarian Kingdom’s Prince Ludwig, in whose honor Oktoberfest was established in 1810. By 1828, the prince had became King Ludwig and had nine children, the first of whom would later succeed him, Maximilian II. When Max II died in 1864, his son Ludwig II assumed the throne. All quite dashing looking men, in my opinion ;-)

Ludwig I

Maximilian II

Ludwig II

In this post, we’ll be visiting Maximilian II and Ludwig II’s countryside castle retreats near Füssen. Both castles were inspired by the ruins of former medieval castles or forts that once existed there, but neither castle standing today was built in the Middle Ages. Both were built just prior to and just after the Civil War in America (for context), in revivalist manners popular at the time: Hohenschwangau in a neo-Gothic style and Neuschwanstein in the romantic Romanesque style.

Maximilian II’s Castle Hohenschwangau

Before Maximilian II assumed the throne, he spent his Crown Prince years (and pocket money) rebuilding upon the ruins of an old medieval castle that he had stumbled upon while walking in the countryside outside of Füssen. Enamored by the idyllic picturesque landscape of Fussen’s Swan District (schwangau), he purchased the ruins of castle Schwanstein (renamed later to Hohenschwangau) in 1829. Maximilian II hired Domenico Quaglio the Younger as lead architect; the Quaglios were a centuries-renowned Italian family of artists. Reconstruction began in 1833.

Just as people with expendable funds today enjoy remodeling projects, it was fashionable throughout Europe in the mid-19th century for the privileged classes to build and re-build, style and re-style their architecture to suit various tastes and trends. With Hohenschwangau, Maximilian took a popular “revivalist” approach, designing the exterior in a neo-Gothic style.

Click any photo for a slide show…

The castle was intended to be a cozy summer residence and hunting retreat for his family, so the interior is decorated with more than 90 wall murals depicting scenes from famous German romance stories, such as Parsifal and Lohengrin, the swan prince. The exterior grounds feature the family coat of arms, manicured gardens, and whimsical fountains. Descendants of the Wittelsbach family continue to call Hohenschwanstein home, but the castle is open for public guided tours daily.

View of Neuschwanstein Castle from Hohenschwangau

Ludwig II’s Castle Neuschwanstein

Maximillian II and his wife, Marie of Prussia, had two children — Ludwig II and Otto. The boys spent a good deal of their childhood at Hohenschwangau, immersed in fairytale walls and poetic landscapes. Their sheltered life made them both a bit eccentric. Otto was officially declared insane; Ludwig II was known to be aloof, fanciful, introverted, and wholly uninterested in Munich or the duties of high office. He was an avid patron of the arts, particularly the opera composer Richard Wagner. He became Wagner’s #1 fan boy du jour, supporting him financially on various projects. Definitely worth reading a bit more on Wikipedia about Ludwig II’s personality and his relationship with Wagner.

Ludwig II became King when he was just 19 years old, following the sudden death of his father in 1864. This was an extremely agitated era, as the “German Question” (how to unify the former states of the Holy Roman Empire) loomed large. Wilhem I and Otto von Bismarck of Prussia were lobbying for a unification of northern Protestant German-speaking lands under Prussian leadership; Austria’s Franz Josef I wanted a broader unification to include its own empire of Austria-Hungary (predominantly Catholic and encompassing many non-Germanic peoples). In 1866, the two major power players duked it out in the Austro-Prussian War (also known as the German Civil War, German Brothers War and the Seven Weeks War). As the policies of his father were pro-Austrian, Ludwig II’s cabinet sided with Austria in the conflict; in reality, Ludwig II probably gave two hoots about the whole affair. Austria lost and Prussia — particularly Bismarck — became the dominant force in central Europe. Meanwhile, “Mad Ludwig” II focused on castle building.

Above his childhood retreat at Hohenschwangau were the ruins of two castles that straddled a cliff. When Ludwig came to power in 1864, his first priority was to commission the construction of a new palace on top of those ruins. The castle he sketched was a romantic Romanesque style, capturing the era and mythology of Wagner’s Tannhäuser and Lohengrin operas. While he had a series of architects and project managers throughout the never-ending construction, his insistence on reviewing and revising every draft, every step of the way meant that the final product was largely considered his own work. It was a lavish, extravagant project. As a constitutional (rather than absolute) monarch, he could not just plunder the state’s funds. He financed his architectural projects first with his own wealth, and then the money he inherited from his grandfather, Ludwig I. Then he borrowed heavily from anyone with a bank. He was so cash-strapped that he ultimately succumbed to a back-door deal with the Prussians, receiving money from a secret Welfon Fund in exchange for promising to support a future Prussia emperor.

Neuschwanstein from Marienbrücke (Bridge of Mary)

In addition to Neuschwanstein, Ludwig II was responsible for the construction of several other castles, including Schloss Linderhof and Schloss Herrenchiemsee, and an elaborate Winter Garden at the Residenze Palace in Munich. His obsession with building beautiful castles would eventually lead to his demise. Heavily indebted, yet relentlessly insisting and contriving ways to borrow and build more, his ministers grew weary. When Ludwig II threatened to fire them all, they conspired against him. His cabinet had him declared mentally incompetent and he was deposed. He was transported to Berg Castle on Lake Starnberg and, days later, he was dead - murdered? suicide? a failed escape? That remains a mystery. What we do know that his legacy lives on in his architectural works, which are visited annually by millions of tourists.

When he died, Neuschwanstein was unfinished. The House of Wittelsburg - namely, his Uncle Luitpold — rushed to finish it in simplified form, opening it up for paying visitors just a few years after Ludwig II’s death. Until World War I in 1914, Neuschwanstein remained a source of income for the Wittelsburg family. Now a state asset, his castles have far and beyond paid for themselves in the form of tourist dollars.

When we visited in 2017, much of the castle was undergoing reconstruction, with buildings covered in scaffolding and inaccessible areas. As a result, we did not take the 35 minute guided tour. Instead, we hiked 40 minutes up the paved path from the visitor center, stopping by Marienbrücke (Bridge of Mary) over the narrow and steep Pollat gorge for unobstructed views and photos. There was also an option to ride a horse-drawn carriage up to the castle.