THE BEGINNING
Once upon a time, in a part of Germany called Bavaria (buh-vair-ee-uh), a prince named Ludwig II was born. When he was just a young boy, his parents, the king and queen, sent Ludwig and his little brother, Otto, to live in the family castle. The king loved reading books and the queen was always traveling, so to stay busy, Ludwig and Otto spent most of their time exploring their new surroundings. The castle was called Hohenschwangau (ho-hen-sh-wan-gou) and it was surrounded by mountains, fields, a mystical lake, and was far from the city
DID YOU KNOW LUDWIG'S
MOTHER, MARIA OF PRUSSIA,
MARRIED LUDWIG'S FATHER
WHEN SHE WAS JUST 17?
“The Crown Prince always wanted to be first, and when they played he already walked in the proud, stately manner typical of his later years.”
— One of Ludwig’s tutors
GROWING UP A PRINCE
Ludwig, born August 25, 1845, and his little brother Otto, born April 27, 1848, grew up knowing they were royalty. They had servants, nannies, and maids to wait on them. As the oldest son, Ludwig would be crowned king one day, so while Otto got to play outside, Ludwig had tutors and lessons to help him prepare for his future role as king.
Prince Ludwig was sad because he was often alone, and rarely around kids his own age. During the times he got to play with his brother, Ludwig would boss Otto around and make him be his servant. The real servants in the castle told stories of how mean Ludwig was when he played with Otto.
Even though he spent a lot of time alone, Ludwig found fun ways to pass the time. He had many make-believe friends and loved to look at the paintings of German fairy tales that hung on the castle’s walls. During his lessons, Ludwig would pretend to be in these fairy tales with his imaginary friends, which made his tutors very mad. Prince Ludwig’s favorite fairy tale was the Swan Knight.
THE SWAN KNIGHT IS A STORY ABOUTA KNIGHT WHO RIDES A BOAT PULLED BY SWANS. HE SAVES A WOMAN NAMED ELSA, BUT HE MAKES HER PROMISE TO NEVER ASK HIS NAME. THE SWAN KNIGHT AND ELSA GET MARRIED, BUT SHE CAN'T STAND THE MYSTERY OF NOT KNOWING HIS NAME AND ASKS HIM THE FORBIDDEN QUESTION. HE TELLS HER HIS NAME, LOHENGRIN, AND THEN GETS BACK IN HIS BOAT, NEVER TO RETURN AGAIN.
BECOMING KING
When Ludwig turned 18, he became the king of Bavaria. Ludwig was the perfect king: kind, handsome, and eager to share his wealth. The people of Bavaria loved their young king very much. A poor farmer once told a story about seeing Prince Ludwig riding across the fields, and that Ludwig had given him a bag of money!
“Since childhood [Ludwig] has taken pleasure in giving his possessions, money, and things to others.”
— Ludwig’s mother, Maria of Prussia
Once Ludwig became king, he started spending a lot of his new riches. As an opera lover, he paid one of his friends, Richard Wagner, to make operas about Ludwig’s favorite fairy tale, the Swan Knight. Ludwig loved the Swan Knight opera so much that he gave Wagner even more money to keep making more operas about his favorite fairy tales. The people of Bavaria called Ludwig the Swan King because of his passion for the Swan Knight.
The Bavarian government did not approve of how much Ludwig was spending; they started to dislike Ludwig and how much everyone in Bavaria loved him. The government soon came up with a plan to ensure that Ludwig wouldn’t be king for long.
THE CASTLE
Ludwig spent a lot of his money on the castle he’d dreamt about as a child. This castle was called Neuschwanstein (noy-shwon-shtine) and was built on the mountain right next to Ludwig’s childhood home. Ludwig wanted to create a castle that looked like something from a fairy tale.
“It is my intention to rebuild the old castle ruin in the authentic style of the old German knights’ castle...This castle will be in every way more beautiful and habitable than Hohenschwangau.”
— A letter from Ludwig to a friend
DID YOU KNOW THAT NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE WAS BUILD ON TOP OF THE RUINS OF AN OLDER, SMALLER CASTLE?
THIS CASTLE HAD THE PERFECT VIEW OF LUDWIG'S CHILDHOOD HOME.
Because Ludwig wanted his castle to be the best, he studied his friends’ homes, remembering the things he liked best about their castles and incorporating those features into his design. With hard work, Ludwig’s wish came true and Neuschwanstein became one of the most popular castles in Europe.
Ludwig moved into the castle before it was even completed, and he brought his imaginary friends with him. Ludwig would host large dinner parties for his imaginary friends, with music and dancing. He also developed a peculiar habit of sleeping all day and staying awake all night.
THE BEGINNING OF THE END
Ludwig’s unusual behavior caused the Bavarian government to question if Ludwig was the right choice for king. They wanted to stop Ludwig from building his castle and giving away his money. The government called in a doctor to check on Ludwig and make sure he was in good health. Without even seeing Ludwig, the doctor determined that Ludwig’s strange behavior made him unfit to rule, so the government came and took Ludwig, saying that he could no longer be king. He was dethroned on June 13, 1886, when he was just 40 years old.
Ludwig was very upset that he was no longer king. He had loved ruling Bavaria and the people thought he had been a great king. Alas, only three days after he was dethroned, Ludwig passed away, and to this day, the reason remains a mystery.
LUDWIG’S LEGACY
After his death, everyone wanted to see Ludwig’s magical castle. The people of Bavaria wanted to share Ludwig’s amazing creation and began giving tours of Neuschwanstein Castle. Before long, thousands of people came from all over
the world to see it!
The castle still isn’t finished, but you can go visit it today. In fact, after visiting Neuschwanstein Castle with his wife, Walt Disney used it as the basis for Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle. Ludwig’s castle is a reminder of the power of imagination and how a great idea can make a significant impact on history. It is his most
important legacy.