There are some forty castles in the Allgäu region of Bavaria alone. The two that most tourists specifically come to see are associated with King Ludwig II, variously called Mad King Ludwig, the Fairy Tale King or Ludwig the Dreamer. These are, in order of popularity, Neuschwanstein Castle, which Ludwig planned and built, and nearby Hohenschwangau Castle, where he spent his early days with his parents and brother Otto and his dwellling when he came to the throne until he built his own castle in 1869.
Hohenschwangau – the Castle of King Maximilian II
The pretty yellow castle Hohenschwangau looks down on the Alpsee (lake) and is situated below Castle Neuschwanstein. It is built on the ruined 12th century fortress Schwanstein; hence, Ludwig’s later (neu)Schwanstein. It is little wonder that Ludwig II was a dreamer and fairytale castle builder, as he must have had the strong influence of his father Maximilian, who purchased Schwanstein and, in 1833, started rebuilding with the declared determination to create a ‘fairy tale palace’. So strong was his interest in fairy tales that he welcomed fairy tale writer Hans Christian Andersen as a guest to Hohenschwangau. According to the Robinson Library, ‘King Max’, as Andersen called him, awarded Andersen the Maximilian Order of Art and Science in 1859. There is a strong precedence here for Ludwig’s adulation of Wagner and his musical scenarios which became incorporated into Castle Neuschwanstein.
Today, Hohenschwangau is an opulent palace to visit and has an excellent photographic record of the Wittelsbach royal family, especially of Ludwig and brother Otto. The rooms are decorated with murals and every room is different in style and theme. The gardens are also a delight with their two swan statues.
Neuschwanstein – the Castle of King Ludwig II
Following in his father’s footsteps, Ludwig was determined to build a fairytale castle – in fact, several of them. The exterior appearance and prominent alpine position of Neuschwanstein makes it the best known and most loved by tourists. Ludwig’s obsession with Wagner commenced early, and on taking the throne one of his first acts was to meet with Wagner, and shortly arranged for the then un-completed Ring of the Nigelung to be the King’s title. Meanwhile, he drew up plans for a Festival Hall in Munich for its first performance (a project vetoed by the state). Wagner made visits to the King’s residence at Hohenschwangau, but he never visited at Neuschwanstein, which, it could be said, was built in his honour.
The foundation stone for the new castle was laid in 1869. By 1884 Ludwig was able to live in his apartments in Neuschwanstein, even though the entire building was not complete. Ludwig’s extravagant castle-building bankrupted the treasury and he was deposed and declared insane. His untimely death by drowning the lake shortly thereafter is suspicious. His three mighty castles were thrown open to the public just months after his death and began to make an excellent return for the state.
Inside Neuschwanstein
Ludwig’s motifs came from the same legends that inspired Wagner’s music; thus, there are three figures that are identifiable – the poet Tanhausser, the swan-knight Lohengrin and Parsival, which the Bavarian Department for State-Owned Castles describes as “Ludwig’s models and kindred spirits”. Ludwig was an illusionist: he demonstrates this in different ways in each castle. In Neuschwanstein his carefully constructed medieval look masks a (19th century) state-of-the-art operation. Running water was available on all floors and hot and cold in the kitchen; there was hot air central heating, lifts, automatic flushing toilets, electric bells to summon servants and even telephones between floors.
Visiting Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau
The visitor who thinks he or she will wander in at leisure and spend hours admiring these great palaces and snapping photos will be sadly disappointed. According to Bavarian Department for State-Owned Castles, some 6000 visitors a day swarm over Neuschwanstein in summer; 1.3 million every year. The logistics of this tourist operation are mind-boggling. When the visitors disgorge from local buses from Füssen, tour coaches and cars, they converge on the ticket centre in Schwangau, where there are six ticket windows for individuals and three windows for tour groups. Tickets are issued with tour number and time of tour entry stamped on them. There is always time built in to comfortably allow the ticket-holder to walk up to the castle.
Once there, the visitor watches for the tour number to come up on the electronic display, goes to the gate and is taken through in a closed group by a guide. The walk up the access road to the castle has some great views and is not too difficult for a person of moderate fitness. There are also horse-drawn cart rides which add to the charm and they are a reasonable price.
Tickets are available exclusively from the ticket centre in Schwangau. It is a good idea, and worth the slight surcharge, to reserve tickets online from the ticket centre site at least one day in advance.
