King ludwig ii childhood home
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Hohenschwangau Castle
Palace in southern Germany
Hohenschwangau Castle (German: Schloss Hohenschwangau) is a 19th-century palace in southern Germany. It was built by King Maximilian II of Bavaria, and was the childhood residence of his son, King Ludwig II of Bavaria. It is located in the German village of Hohenschwangau near the town of Füssen, part of the county of Ostallgäu in southwestern Bavaria, Germany, very close to the border with Austria.
History
[edit]The fortress Schwangau (literally translated the Swan District), which was first mentioned in historical records dating from the 12th century, stood high up on a rock on the site of the present 19th-century Neuschwanstein castle. The knights, later counts of Schwangau, were ministeriales of the Welfs. Hiltbolt von Schwangau (1195–1254) was a minnesinger. Margareta von Schwangau was the wife of minnesinger Oswald von Wolkenstein.
The present day Hohenschwangau ("Upper Schwangau") castle was first mention
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Ludwig II of Bavaria
King of Bavaria from 1864 to 1886
"Ludwig II" redirects here. For other uses, see Ludwig II (disambiguation).
Ludwig II (Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm; 25 August 1845 – 13 June 1886),[1] also called the Swan King or the Fairy Tale King (der Märchenkönig), was King of Bavaria from 1864 until his death in 1886. He also held the titles of Count Palatine of the floden rhen, Duke of Bavaria, Duke of Franconia, and Duke in Swabia.[2] Outside Germany, he is at times called "the Mad King" or Mad King Ludwig.[3]
Ludwig ascended to the throne in 1864 at the age of 18 but increasingly withdrew from day-to-day affairs of state in favour of extravagant artistic and architectural projects. He commissioned the construction of lavish palaces: Neuschwanstein Castle, Linderhof Palace, and Herrenchiemsee. He was also a devoted patron of the composer Richard Wagner. Ludwig spent all his own private royal revenues (although not state funds as
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This blog post about Hohenschwangau Castle is Part One of a two part series about Bavaria’s fairy tale castles. In Part Two we will visit Neuschwanstein Castle.
The Fairytale Castles in Hohenschwangau
Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castles are well known for their fairy tale-like appearance, but it’s their surreal location in Bavaria, Germany, that markedly enhances their beauty.
These two castles, one the childhood residence of King Ludwig II, the other his extravagant creation, are perched on the hills in Schwangau, overlooking peaceful Alpsee Lake and the small resort village of Hohenschwangau. Surrounded by a dense forest, these castles are especially beautiful to visit on a cool, fall morning when the leaves’ vibrant colours are on display, the fog rolling in to create an air of mystery.
Arriving in Hohenschwangau
If you’re anything like me, you’ll be over