Europe · Germany · Bavaria
Neuschwanstein Castle
The story
History of Neuschwanstein Castle
Ludwig II's hillside fantasy above the Alpsee, built with modern steel and medieval imagery. Its turrets inspired Disney's fairy-tale castle and draw more than a million visitors a year.
Germany · Bavaria · Romantic Revival
- Built
- 1869–1886
- Era
- Revival
- Style
- Romantic Revival
- Country
- Germany
- Region
- Bavaria
- UNESCO
- —
- Coordinates
- 47.558, 10.750
In depth
The fuller history
In 1868, the ruins of the medieval twin castles were completely demolished; the remains of the old keep were blown up. The foundation stone for the palace was laid on 5 September 1869; in 1872, its cellar was completed, and in 1876, everything up to the first floor, the gatehouse being finished first. At the end of 1882, it was completed and fully furnished, allowing Ludwig to take provisional lodgings there and observe the ongoing construction work. In 1874, management of the civil works passed from Eduard Riedel to Georg von Dollmann.
Due to its secluded and strategically unimportant location, the palace survived the destruction of the two World Wars. Until 1944, it served as a depot for Nazi plunder that was taken from France by the Reichsleiter Rosenberg Institute for the Occupied Territories (Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg für die besetzten Gebiete), a suborganisation of the Nazi Party. The castle was used to catalogue the works of art. After World War II, 39 photo albums were found in the palace documenting the scale of the art seizures. The albums are now stored in the United States National Archives.
Key dates
- 1837Finished in 1837, the palace became his family's summer residence, and his elder son Ludwig (born 1845) spent a large part of his childhood here.
- 1868In 1868, the ruins of the medieval twin castles were completely demolished; the remains of the old keep were blown up.
- 1880In 1880, about 200 craftsmen were occupied at the site, not counting suppliers and other persons indirectly involved in the construction.
- 1884In 1884, the King moved into the (still unfinished) Palas, and in 1885 he invited his mother Marie to Neuschwanstein on the occasion of her 60th birthday.
- 1918When Bavaria became a republic in 1918, the government socialised the civil list.
- 2021The construction costs of Neuschwanstein in the King's lifetime amounted to 6.2 million German gold marks (equivalent to €47 million in 2021), almost twice the initial cost estimate of 3.2 million marks.
Historical summary drawn from Wikipedia. Read the full article.
Tips & experiences
Been here? Leave a note for the next visitor.
Loading tips…