where can i find some good history about king ludwig?

Question

since being stationed in germany i believe i have become taken by the life of king ludwig, his castles are truly beautiful and well made, but i am just curious as what his life may have been like. all the books i find are only about 20-80 pages long and don;t really tell much. any suggestions?

k. can i get soem good answers please. and for those of you who answered and don't know who he is here is some info.

Ludwig (Louis) II, King of Bavaria, Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm; sometimes known in English as "Mad King Ludwig" and as the "Märchenkö***" (Fairy-tale King) in German. (August 25, 1845 – June 13, 1886) was king of Bavaria from 1864 until his death.

King Ludwig II designed and built the Bavarian castle Neuschwanstein, which inspired the design of the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland; he left a large collection of plans for other castles that were never built.

Ludwig (Louis) II, King of Bavaria, Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm; sometimes known in English as "Mad King Ludwig" and as the "Märchenkö***" (Fairy-tale King) in German. (August 25, 1845 – June 13, 1886) was king of Bavaria from 1864 until his death.

King Ludwig II designed and built the Bavarian castle Neuschwanstein.

Answer 1

hello there.im also living in germany(munich) and became totally fascinated with the "swan king".ive been to all his castles,where he was born,where he was baptised,where he drowned and where he is buried.ludwig was born in nymphenburg castle which is in munich.as a child he had a typical 19th century german upbringing of rigid discipline and frequent beatings.his father was a distant man and did not show him much affection.his mother used to take him and his brother for frequent walks in the bavarian alps from their castle of hohenschwanga, which is situated at the foot the the castle that he would one day build called neuschwanstein.his love affair for the alps and swans in particular started at this young age.when he was a teen he heard an opera written by wagner and immediately fell in love music which had such a profound effect on him that he designed the interiors of his extravagant castles based on the set design of wagners operas.ludwig and wagner also formed a life long friendship.in his later years ,ludwig was engaged to be married but cancelled the wedding and remained single for the rest of his life, thus the reason that some historians claim that he was gay.ludwig also became obsessed with absolute monarchy and building extravagant castles and got himself into so much debt that the bavarian government had to intervene.he pronounced insane and confined to castle berg which is on the shores of sternberger see.there his body was found floating near the shore of lake sternberg.with him was also the body of his psychologist.lots of controversy surround his death.some say he murdered his psychologist and tried to swim to the opposite side of the lake where a boat was waiting to help him escape but he drowned in the process.others say that after he killed his psychologist he was trying to escape but was shot by one of the soldiers out searching for him.the autopsy was conducted under strict secrecy and the official cause of death was drowning.no one will no for certain.he is buried in big metal coffin which is situated in the crypt under the beautiful michealskirche in munich.you can go and see it for only 2 € .you can also see the spot where his body was found at lake sternberg.very interesting person.im totally fascinated with his life story.

Answer 2

I don't think you'll find more than just a few pages on an internet site, unfortunately. This first link is interesting, and there is a bibliography:
http://www.xs4all.nl/~kvenjb/madmonarchs/ludwig2/ludwig2_bio.htm

Try this also:
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/LeftBank/4080/home.htm

And more that might help:
http://www.schwangau.de/en/king_ludwig.html
http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/ludwig_II.html
http://www.neuschwanstein.com/english/castle/ludwig/index.htm
http://www.koenig-ludwig.org/english/
http://german.about.com/library/blludwig02.htm
http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/dadd/1258/LudwigII.html
http://members.tripod.com/~Nevermore/ludwig.html

I think you've already googled and found all these sites! If you're learning German, there would probably be a better choice of books about the king. I did have an old translation about his life, but can't find it now. Anyway, I hope the above is helpful.

Answer 3

online or the library

Answer 4

who?

Answer 5

Ludwig (Louis) II, King of Bavaria, Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm; sometimes known in English as "Mad King Ludwig" and as the "Märchenkö***" (Fairy-tale King) in German. (August 25, 1845 – June 13, 1886) was king of Bavaria from 1864 until his death.

King Ludwig II designed and built the Bavarian castle Neuschwanstein, which inspired the design of the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland; he left a large collection of plans for other castles that were never built.

Born in Nymphenburg (today part of Munich), he was the son of King Maximilian II of Bavaria and Princess Marie of Prussia. Ludwig was continually reminded of his royal power as a child, and as a child he was extremely spoiled on some occasions but severely controlled by his instructors and subjected to a strict regimen of study and exercise on others. Ludwig apologists explain that much of his odd behaviour as an adult was caused by the stress of growing up in a royal family.

Ludwig's youth did have happy times, such as visits to Hohenschwangau and Lake Starnberg with his family. Teenaged Ludwig became best friends and possibly the lover of his aide de camp, the handsome aristocrat and actor Paul Maximilian Lamoral of Thurn and Taxis of Bavaria's wealthy Thurn and Taxis family. The two young men rode together, read poetry aloud, and staged scenes from the Romantic operas of Richard Wagner. The relationship broke off when Paul became more interested in young women. During his youth, Ludwig also initiated a lifelong friendship with his cousin Duchess Elisabeth, Empress of Austria. They both loved nature and poetry, and nicknamed each other "the Eagle" (Ludwig) and "the Seagull" (Elisabeth).

[edit] His reign
Ludwig II of Bavaria
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Ludwig II of Bavaria

Ludwig ascended to the Bavarian throne at age 18, following his father's death. His youth and brooding good looks made him wildly popular in Bavaria and abroad. One of his first acts was official patronage of his idol, the German opera composer Richard Wagner, despite Wagner having Europe-wide notoriety for his past political activism and radical new-style operas. Wagner's Lohengrin, with its swan knight hero and focus on medieval German romance, had captivated the young king's fantasy-filled imagination, and he even invited the radical composer to his conservative-minded royal court. For much of Ludwig's rule, he promoted reconciliation amongst the German states.

The greatest stresses of Ludwig's early reign were pressure to produce an heir, and relations with militant Prussia. Both issues came to the forefront in 1867. Ludwig was engaged to Princess Sophie, his cousin and Empress Elisabeth's younger sister. Their engagement was publicized on January 22, 1867, but after repeatedly postponing the wedding date, Ludwig finally cancelled the engagement in October. Ludwig never married, but Sophie later married Ferdinand Philippe Marie, duc d'Alençon (1844–1910), son of Louis Charles Philippe Raphael, duc de Nemours. She died several years later in a fire which destroyed the Paris Charity Bazaar.

Though Ludwig had sided with Austria against Prussia in the Seven Weeks' War, he accepted a mutual defense treaty with Prussia in 1867 after being defeated in the war. Under the terms of this treaty, Bavaria joined with Prussia against France in the Franco-Prussian War. On the request of Bismarck, Ludwig solicited a letter in December 1870 calling for the creation of a German Empire. He received some concessions in return for his support, but the era of Bavarian independence was over.

Throughout his reign, Ludwig had a succession of infatuations with handsome men, including his chief equerry Richard Hornig, Hungarian theatre star Josef Kainz, and courtier Alfons Weber. In 1869, he began keeping a diary in which he recorded his private thoughts and discussed his attempts to suppress his sexual desires and remain true to his Catholic beliefs. Ludwig's original diaries were lost during World War II, and all that remains today are copies of entries made prior to the war. These copied diary entries, along with private letters and other surviving personal documents, suggest that Ludwig struggled with homosexuality.[1]

As Ludwig's rule progressed, he became increasingly withdrawn. In the 1880s, Ludwig spent much of his time in seclusion in the Alps. There he built several expensive fairytale palaces with the stage designer Christian Jank, and imagined a dream world with himself as an absolute monarch descended from Louis XIV of France.

[edit] His death
Ludwig II of Bavaria
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Ludwig II of Bavaria

On June 10, 1886, Ludwig was officially declared insane by the government and incapable of executing his governmental powers, and Prince Luitpold was declared regent. The psychiatrist Professor Bernhard von Gudden despite never having examined Ludwig, headed the psychiatric team that declared Ludwig to be suffering from paranoia (comparable to a modern diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia). Their chief evidence was stories of Ludwig's odd behavior, collected from palace servants by his political enemies. As many of these stories were not firsthand accounts and may have been obtained with bribery or threats, their reliability is questionable. Some historians believe that Ludwig was sane, an innocent victim of political intrigue. Others believe he may have suffered from a substance abuse problem or neurological disorder rather than mental illness. Empress Elisabeth held that "The King was not mad; he was just an eccentric living in a world of dreams. They might have treated him more gently, and thus perhaps spared him so terrible an end."

Ludwig was taken into custody in secret. The event proved as unusual as any in his life. An eccentric but loyal baroness arrived at the gate of the rural castle to wave her umbrella menacingly and to harangue the men who came to imprison Ludwig. The king himself reportedly ordered all kinds of nonsensical punishments against the "treasonous" ministers. A huge force of peasants swarmed to Hohenschwangau to protect the King. They were willing to escort Ludwig under guard across the border and save him. But Ludwig refused. The battalion of soldiers at nearby Kempten had been summoned to Neuschwanstein, but it was retained by the government.

Ludwig attempted to issue the following proclamation to the public:

The Prince Luitpold intends, against my will, to ascend to the Regency of my land, and my erstwhile ministry has, through false allegations regarding the state of my health, deceived my beloved people, and is preparing to commit acts of high treason. [...] I call upon every loyal Bavarian to rally around my loyal supporters to thwart the planned treason against the King and the fatherland.

This was printed by a Bamberg newspaper on June 11, 1886, but the copies were seized by the government to prevent distribution. Most of Ludwig's telegrams to the newspapers and his friends were intercepted. Ludwig did receive a message from Bismarck advising him to go to Munich and show himself to the people, but Ludwig refused to leave Neuschwanstein. On the morning of the twelfth, a second Commission reached the castle. The King was placed under arrest at 4:00 a.m. and transported to Castle Berg in Berg, south of Munich.

Mystery surrounds Ludwig's death on Lake Starnberg (then called Lake Würm). On June 13, at 6:30 p.m., Ludwig asked to take a walk with Professor Gudden. Gudden agreed, and told the guards not to follow them. The two men never returned from their walk. King Ludwig and Professor Gudden were found dead in the water near the shore of Lake Starnberg at 11:30 p.m. that night. A little chapel was later built overlooking the site. A remembrance ceremony is held there each year on June 13.

Ludwig's death was officially ruled a suicide by drowning, but alternate theories abound. Ludwig was known to be a good swimmer, the water was less than waist-deep where his body was found, and the official autopsy report indicates that no water was found in his lungs. No solid proof of foul play has ever come to light, but many hold that Ludwig was either assassinated by his political enemies or killed while attempting to escape from Berg. Another theory suggests that Ludwig died of natural causes (such as a heart attack or stroke) during an escape attempt.

Ludwig's body was interred in the crypt of the Michaelskirche in Munich.

[edit] His legacy

Ludwig is remembered as one of the most unusual rulers in German history. He was quite popular among his subjects, for three major reasons. First, he avoided engaging in war, giving Bavaria a time of peace. Whether this was due to a belief in pacifism or a lack of interest in politics is debatable. Second, Ludwig funded the construction of his famous fairy-tale castles with his personal income, not from the state budget. This gave many people employment and brought a considerable flow of money to the regions involved. Third, his public eccentricities could be very charming. He hated crowds and formal affairs, but Ludwig did not consider himself above socializing with commoners. He enjoyed traveling in the Bavarian countryside and chatting with farmers and laborers he met along the way. Ludwig also delighted in rewarding those who were hospitable to him during his travels with lavish gifts. He is still remembered in Bavaria as "Unser Kini" which means "our darling king" in the Bavarian dialect of German.

Ironically, although their construction nearly bankrupted Bavaria's royal family, Ludwig's palaces have become profitable tourist attractions for the Bavarian state. The palaces have paid for themselves many times over.

[edit] Ludwig and the arts
Ludwig II with his idol Richard Wagner, the composer of Lohengrin, at the piano
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Ludwig II with his idol Richard Wagner, the composer of Lohengrin, at the piano
An 1890s photochrom print of Neuschwanstein.
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An 1890s photochrom print of Neuschwanstein.
The coat of arms of King Ludwig over the entrance to Neuschwanstein.
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The coat of arms of King Ludwig over the entrance to Neuschwanstein.

Ludwig was a major patron of composer Richard Wagner, and he funded the construction of the Bayreuth Festspielhaus. Without Ludwig's support, it is almost certain that Wagner would have been unable to complete his opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen or to write his final opera, Parsifal. Ludwig also sponsored the premieres of Tristan und Isolde, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and, through his financial support of the Bayreuth Festival, those of Der Ring des Nibelungen and Parsifal.

[edit] His buildings

Ludwig left behind a large collection of plans and designs for other castles that were never built, as well as plans for further rooms in his completed buildings. Many of these designs are housed today in the King Ludwig II Museum at Herrenchiemsee. These building designs date from the latter part of the King's reign, beginning around 1883. As money was starting to run out, the artists knew that their designs would never be executed. The designs became more extravagant and numerous as the artists realized that there was no need to concern themselves with economy or practicality.

* Neuschwanstein—or "New Swan Stone", a dramatic Romanesque fortress with Byzantine and Gothic interiors, which was built next to his father's castle: Hohenschwangau. Numerous wall paintings depict scenes from Wagner's operas. Christian glory and chaste love figure predominantly in the iconography, and may have been intended to help Ludwig live up to his religious ideals. The castle was not finished at Ludwig's death. It is by far the best known (to non-Germans) landmark in Germany today. Neuschwanstein would become the inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland.

* Linderhof—an ornate palace in neo-Rococo style, with handsome formal gardens. The grounds contain a grotto where opera singers performed on an underground lake lit with electricity, a novelty at that time, and a Romantic woodsman's hut built inside an artificial tree. Inside the palace, iconography reflects Ludwig's fascination with the absolutist government of Ancien Régime France. Ludwig saw himself as the "Moon King", a Romantic shadow of the earlier "Sun King", Louis XIV of France. From Linderhof, Ludwig enjoyed moonlit sleigh rides in an elaborate eighteenth century sleigh, complete with footmen in eighteenth century livery. He was known to stop and visit with rural peasants while on rides, adding to his legend and popularity.

* Herrenchiemsee—a replica of the palace at Versailles, France, which was meant to outdo its predecessor in scale and opulence. It is located on an island in the middle of the Chiemsee. Most of the palace was never completed once the king ran out of money, and Ludwig lived there for only the 10 days before his mysterious death.

* Ludwig also outfitted Schachen king's house with an overwhelmingly decorative Arabian style interior, including a replica of the famous Peacock Throne. There are stories of luxurious parties with the king sometimes reclining in the role of Turkish sultan while the most handsome soldiers and stable boys served him as scantily clad dancers. These stories may or may not be true.

* Falkenstein—a planned, but never executed "robber baron's castle". A painting by Christian Jank shows the proposed building as an even more fairytale version of Neuschwanstein, perched on a rocky cliff.

v • d • e
Ludwig II of Bavaria's buildings
Falkenstein | Herrenchiemsee | Königshaus am Schachen | Linderhof | Neuschwanstein

[edit] Ludwig in fiction

The 1972 movie Ludwig, directed by Luchino Visconti was based on his life. The computer game Gabriel Knight: The Beast Within features several Ludwig II-related locations and includes extensive discussion of his life, although numerous fictional elements (including werewolves and a lost Wagner opera entitled Der Fluch des Engelhart ("The Curse of Engelhart") are added to fit in with the supernatural mystery plot of the game. There is also a three-volume manga published by Kadokawa Shoten called Ludwig II (ルートヴィヒⅡ世, Ruutovihi II sei) by the artist Higuri You (氷栗優), a highly fictionalized account of Ludwig's love life. The Busch Gardens Europe ride Curse of DarKastle features Ludwig as a king whose parents, and later, party guests "mysteriously disappeared", and who now haunts his old castle terrorizing guests riding golden sleighs. As with Gabriel Knight: The Beast Within, werewolves figure in the ride. The cartoon series "Jackie Chan Adventures"has its first episode having jackie avoiding traps in Ludwig's castle.