Neuschwanstein Castle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Neuschwanstein Castle |
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Neuschwanstein Castle in 2013, looking northeast
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| General information | |
| Architectural style | Romanesque Revival |
| Location | Hohenschwangau, Germany |
| Coordinates | 47°33′27″N 10°44′58″E / 47.55750°N 10.74944°E |
| Construction started | 5 September 1869 |
| Completed | c. 1886 (opened) |
| Owner | Bavarian Palace Department |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Eduard Riedel |
| Civil engineer | Eduard Riedel, Georg von Dollmann, Julius Hofmann |
| Other designers | Ludwig II, Christian Jank |
Neuschwanstein Castle (German: Schloss Neuschwanstein, pronounced [ˈʃlɔs nɔʏˈʃvaːnʃtaɪn]) is a beautiful palace built in the 1800s. It sits on a rocky hill in the Alps mountains, in southern Germany. The castle is very close to the border with Austria.
It is located in a part of Bavaria called Swabia, in the town of Schwangau. The village of Hohenschwangau is nearby, which also has Hohenschwangau Castle. The closest big town is Füssen. Neuschwanstein Castle overlooks the Pöllat stream gorge and two lakes, Alpsee and Schwansee.
Even though the King of Bavaria already had a huge palace in Munich, King Ludwig II wanted a quiet place. He built Neuschwanstein as a private retreat. He also wanted to honor the famous composer Richard Wagner, whom he greatly admired.
King Ludwig II paid for the castle using his own money and by borrowing a lot. Construction started in 1869 but was never fully finished. The castle was meant to be his private home. However, he died in 1886, and it was opened to the public soon after. Since then, over 61 million people have visited Neuschwanstein Castle. More than 1.3 million people visit every year, with up to 6,000 visitors per day in the summer!
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Where is Neuschwanstein Castle?
The town of Schwangau is about 800 m (2,620 ft) above sea level. It's on the southwest border of Bavaria, a state in Germany. The area has mountains to the south, near Austria, and rolling hills to the north.
Long ago, in the Middle Ages, three castles stood in this area. One was called Schwanstein Castle. In 1832, King Ludwig II's father, King Maximilian II of Bavaria, bought its old ruins. He built a comfortable new palace there called Hohenschwangau Castle. This palace was finished in 1837 and became the family's summer home. Ludwig II spent much of his childhood there.
Two other castles, Vorderhohenschwangau and Hinterhohenschwangau, were on a rugged hill. They overlooked Schwanstein Castle, the two lakes (Alpsee and Schwansee), and the village. These two castles were separated by a moat. By the 1800s, only ruins of these medieval castles remained.
Young Ludwig knew these ruins well from his adventures. He first drew one in his diary in 1859. When he became king in 1864, he decided to build a new palace on the site of these two ruined castles. He called his new palace New Hohenschwangau Castle. Later, after Ludwig's death, it was renamed Neuschwanstein.
Building the Dream Castle
Ideas and Design
Neuschwanstein Castle shows off a popular style of the 1800s called "castle Romanticism." It also reflects King Ludwig II's love for Richard Wagner's operas. In the 19th century, many old castles were rebuilt or changed to look more beautiful. Other similar projects in Germany included Hohenschwangau Castle and Lichtenstein Castle.
Ludwig got ideas for Neuschwanstein from two trips in 1867. He visited the rebuilt Wartburg Castle in Germany and the Château de Pierrefonds in France. Both castles had been restored to look like they did in the Middle Ages.
Ludwig felt these buildings showed the romantic spirit of the Middle Ages. They also reminded him of the stories in his friend Wagner's operas, like Tannhäuser and Lohengrin. In 1868, Ludwig's grandfather died, which meant Ludwig had more money. This allowed him to start building his private escape. He wanted a place far from the busy city of Munich where he could live out his dream of the Middle Ages.
In a letter to Richard Wagner in May 1868, Ludwig wrote:
I want to rebuild the old castle ruin near the Pöllat Gorge in the true style of old German knights' castles. I can't wait to live there one day! ... You know the special guest I'd like to have there; the spot is one of the most beautiful, sacred, and peaceful. It will be a worthy temple for the divine friend who has brought salvation and true blessing to the world. It will also remind you of "Tannhäuser" and "Lohengrin."
A stage designer named Christian Jank drew the first designs. The architect Eduard Riedel then made them real. The old castle ruins could not be used in the new design. The first ideas were for a simpler building, but Ludwig kept asking for bigger and grander plans. The final design was a huge palace, inspired by Wartburg Castle. The king was very involved in every detail. He approved every drawing himself. Because of his strong control, many people see the palace as his own creation.
At the time, some critics called Neuschwanstein "kitsch" (meaning it was in bad taste). But today, Neuschwanstein and Ludwig II's other buildings are seen as important examples of 19th-century architecture. Another castle project, Falkenstein Castle, was planned but never built because of money problems.
The palace mixes different old styles:
- Romanesque (simple shapes like squares and round arches)
- Gothic (tall lines, slim towers, fancy decorations)
- Byzantine (like the Throne Hall's decorations)
These styles were combined with new technologies from the 1800s. The main building has paintings of Patrona Bavariae and Saint George. These are done in a local style called Lüftlmalerei, which is a type of fresco painting. The design of Neuschwanstein often uses ideas from theater. Christian Jank used his experience as a stage painter for the castle's look. The main style was first planned to be neo-Gothic, but it ended up being mostly Romanesque. The opera themes changed from Tannhäuser and Lohengrin to Parsifal.
How it was Built
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In 1868, the ruins of the old castles were completely torn down. The foundation stone for the new palace was laid on September 5, 1869. The cellar was finished in 1872, and the first floor in 1876. The gatehouse was the first part to be completed. By the end of 1882, it was ready, and Ludwig could stay there. From there, he watched the rest of the construction.
In 1874, Georg von Dollmann took over the building work from Eduard Riedel. The main building, called the Palas, had its highest point reached in 1880. In 1884, the King moved into the new building. That same year, Julius Hofmann took over the project after Dollmann fell out of favor with the King.
The palace was built with bricks first. Then, different types of stone were put on the outside. The white stone for the front came from a nearby quarry. Sandstone for the doorways and bay windows came from another town. Marble from near Salzburg was used for the windows, arches, and columns. The Throne Hall was added later to the plans and needed a strong steel frame.
Building materials were moved using scaffolding and a steam crane. Another crane was used on the building site. A group that checked steam boilers regularly inspected both cranes.
For about 20 years, the construction site was the main employer in the area. In 1880, about 200 craftsmen worked there. This doesn't include suppliers or others involved. When the King wanted things done quickly, up to 300 workers were active each day. Sometimes they even worked at night using oil lamps.
Records from 1879/1880 show how much material was used:
- 465 tonnes (513 short tons) of marble
- 1,550 t (1,710 short tons) of sandstone
- 400,000 bricks
- 2,050 cubic metres (2,680 cu yd) of wood for scaffolding
In 1870, a special group was created to help workers. They paid a small monthly fee, and the King added money too. Families of workers who died (30 cases were recorded) received a small pension.
In 1884, the King moved into the Palas, even though it wasn't finished. In 1885, he invited his mother, Marie, to Neuschwanstein for her 60th birthday. By 1886, the outside of the Palas was mostly done. That same year, Ludwig had the old wooden bridge over the Pöllat Gorge replaced with a steel one.
Even though it was huge, Neuschwanstein didn't have space for the King's entire court. It only had the King's private rooms and rooms for servants. The palace was meant to be like a living theater stage for King Ludwig II. It was also a "temple of friendship" dedicated to Richard Wagner, who died in 1883 without ever seeing the castle. In the end, King Ludwig II only lived in the palace for a total of 172 days.
Paying for the Castle
The King's wishes grew during construction, and so did the costs. Plans and cost estimates were changed many times. At first, a simple study was planned instead of the grand throne hall. Guest rooms were removed to make space for a "Moorish Hall," which was never built due to lack of money. The castle was supposed to be finished by 1872, but it was delayed again and again.
Neuschwanstein was not King Ludwig II's only huge building project. He also built Linderhof Palace and Herrenchiemsee Palace. Linderhof was the smallest and finished in 1886. The other two were never completed. All three projects used up a lot of his money. The King paid for his castles with his own money and from his income. The Bavarian government's money was not directly used for his buildings. From 1871, Ludwig also received secret payments for a political favor he did for Otto von Bismarck.
The cost of Neuschwanstein during the King's life was 6.2 million German gold marks. This was almost double the first estimate of 3.2 million marks. Since his own money wasn't enough, the King kept borrowing more. By 1883, he owed 7 million marks. By 1885, his debts were even higher.
Even with debts of 14 million marks, King Ludwig II insisted on continuing his building projects. In early 1886, he asked his government for 6 million marks, but they said no. In June, the Bavarian government decided to remove the King from power. He was living at Neuschwanstein at the time. On June 9, he was declared unable to rule. On June 10, he had the group sent to remove him arrested at the gatehouse. He also called for police and fire brigades from nearby towns to protect him.
A second group arrived the next day, and the King was forced to leave the palace that night. Ludwig was placed under the care of a doctor named Bernhard von Gudden. On June 13, both the King and Dr. Gudden died in a mysterious way in the shallow water of Lake Starnberg.
Finishing the Castle Simply
When King Ludwig died, the palace was far from finished. The outside of the Gatehouse and the Palas were mostly done, but the Rectangular Tower still had scaffolding. Work on the Bower had not started, but it was finished in a simpler way by 1892. The Knights' House was also simplified.
The main part of the palace, a keep (a tall tower) that was supposed to be 90 metres (300 ft) high, was never built. It was planned for the upper courtyard, with a chapel at its base. Only the foundations exist for it today. Plans for a castle garden with terraces and a fountain were also abandoned after the King's death.
Most of the King's living spaces inside the palace were finished by 1886. The hallways were painted in a simpler style by 1888. The "Moorish Hall" and the "Knights' Bath" that the King wanted were never built. Other planned rooms like a "Bride Chamber" and guest rooms were also left unfinished. In fact, a complete plan for all of Neuschwanstein was never made. Many rooms had no purpose when the King died.
The King never wanted the palace to be open to the public. But just six weeks after his death, the new ruler, Prince-Regent Luitpold, ordered it opened to visitors who paid a fee. The people managing King Ludwig's estate were able to pay off the building debts by 1899. From then until World War I, Neuschwanstein brought in a lot of money for the royal family.
When Bavaria became a republic in 1918, the government took over the royal family's income. After some disagreements, in 1923, King Ludwig's palaces, including Neuschwanstein, became state property. They are now managed by the Bavarian Palace Department.
World War II and Beyond
Because of its hidden location, the palace was not damaged during the two World Wars. Until 1944, it was used as a storage place for artworks taken from France by a Nazi group. The castle helped them keep track of the art. After World War II, 39 photo albums were found in the palace. These albums showed how many artworks had been taken. They are now kept in the United States National Archives.
In April 1945, a Nazi group thought about blowing up the palace. They wanted to stop the building and the art inside from falling into enemy hands. But the plan was not carried out. At the end of the war, the palace was given to the Allied forces without damage. The Allies later returned the palace to the Bavarian government. After that, the Bavarian archives used some rooms to store salvaged documents because their own buildings in Munich had been bombed.
Castle Design and Features
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Neuschwanstein Castle looks very artistic, both inside and out. King Ludwig's ideas are clear everywhere. He was very interested in the design and decoration. For example, he gave specific instructions for a painting of Lohengrin in the main building. He wanted the ship to be further from shore and the swan's chain to be gold, not roses. He also wanted the castle style to stay medieval.
The main building, the Palas, has the Throne Room, the King's private rooms, the Singers' Hall, and the Grotto. The inside, especially the throne room, uses ideas from old churches in Palermo, Italy. The design throughout the castle honors German legends, especially the story of Lohengrin, the Swan Knight. Hohenschwangau, where Ludwig grew up, also had decorations from these stories. Many rooms have borders showing scenes from Wagner's operas.
Many rooms inside the castle were never decorated. Only 14 rooms were finished before Ludwig's death. A huge keep (a tall tower) was planned for the middle of the upper courtyard. It would have been the highest point of the castle. But it was never built, as the King's family decided against it. You can still see the foundation for this tower in the upper courtyard.
Neuschwanstein Castle is made up of several separate buildings. They stretch for 150 metres (490 ft) along the top of a cliff. The long building has many towers, decorative turrets, gables, balconies, and sculptures. Most windows are shaped like two or three arches, following the Romanesque style.
With the Tegelberg mountain and Pöllat Gorge to the south, and the lakes to the north, the castle offers beautiful views from every direction. It was designed to look like a romantic knight's castle. Unlike real castles, which were built over many centuries, Neuschwanstein was planned from the start to be uneven. It was built in different stages. It has many parts that look like a castle, but it doesn't have real defenses, which were important for medieval castles.
Outside the Castle
You enter the castle complex through the Gatehouse. It has two stair towers on either side. The Gatehouse is the only part of the castle with high-contrast colors. The outside walls are red brick, and the courtyard walls are yellow limestone. The roof has many small pointed towers. The top floor of the Gatehouse was King Ludwig II's first home at Neuschwanstein. From there, he could watch the building work. The ground floors of the Gatehouse were meant for stables.
The path through the Gatehouse, which has the royal coat of arms of Bavaria, leads right into the courtyard. The courtyard has two levels. The lower level is bordered by the Gatehouse and the foundations of the Rectangular Tower. The south side of the courtyard is open, giving a view of the mountains. At its west end, the courtyard has a brick wall. This wall marks where a chapel was planned, which would have been the base for a 90 metres (300 ft) high keep. This chapel and keep were never built. Steps on the side lead to the upper level.
Today, the outline of the planned chapel and keep is marked on the upper courtyard pavement. The most noticeable building in the upper court is the Rectangular Tower, which is 45 metres (148 ft) (148 feet) tall. Like most of the courtyard buildings, it's mostly for decoration. Its viewing platform offers a wide view over the Alpine foothills to the north.
The north side of the upper courtyard is bordered by the Knights' House. This three-story building is connected to the Rectangular Tower and the Gatehouse by a long gallery with arches. In the idea of a romantic castle, the Knights' House was where the men of the castle lived. At Neuschwanstein, it was planned for staff and service rooms. The Bower, which was meant to be the ladies' house, is on the south side of the courtyard. Both the Knights' House and the Bower together look like the "Antwerp Castle" from the first act of Wagner's Lohengrin.
The western end of the courtyard is bordered by the Palas (main building). This is the King's main residence. The Palas is a huge five-story building made of two large rectangular parts connected at an angle. It has two tall gable roofs. The building's shape follows the curve of the hill. At its corners are two stair towers. The northern tower is 65 metres (213 ft) (213 feet) tall and rises above the palace roof. Both towers, with their unique roofs, remind people of the Château de Pierrefonds.
The western side of the Palas has a two-story balcony with a view of the Alpsee lake. To the north, a small tower and a glass conservatory stick out from the main building. The entire Palas is covered with many decorative chimneys and small towers. The courtyard side has colorful fresco paintings. The gable on the courtyard side has a copper lion on top, and the western gable has a knight.
Inside the Castle
If it had been finished, the palace would have had over 200 rooms. These included rooms for guests, servants, and service areas. But only about 15 rooms and halls were completed. The lower floors of the Palas have administrative and servants' rooms. The King's main rooms are on the upper floors. The front part of the building has the King's rooms on the third floor, and above them, the Hall of the Singers. The upper floors of the west-facing back part are almost entirely taken up by the Throne Hall. The total floor space of all finished floors is nearly 6,000 square metres (65,000 sq ft).
Neuschwanstein has many important rooms that show the German "historicism" style. The palace had some of the newest technologies of the late 1800s. For example, it had a battery-powered bell system for servants and telephone lines. The kitchen had a special oven that automatically turned the meat on a skewer. The hot air from the oven was used for a central heating system. Other new features for that time were running warm water and toilets with automatic flushing.
The largest room in the palace is the Hall of the Singers, followed by the Throne Hall. The Hall of the Singers is 27-by-10-metre (89 by 33 ft) and is on the fourth floor, above the King's rooms. It was designed to combine two rooms from the Wartburg Castle: the Hall of the Singers and the Ballroom. This was one of the King's favorite parts of his palace. The rectangular room is decorated with scenes from Lohengrin and Parzival. One long side has a gallery with a raised platform, like the Wartburg. The short eastern side has a stage with arches, called the Sängerlaube.
The Hall of the Singers was never meant for big court parties. Instead, like the Throne Hall, it was a monument to the culture of knights and courtly love from the Middle Ages. The first performance in this hall was in 1933, a concert celebrating 50 years since Richard Wagner's death.
The Throne Hall, 20 by 12 metres (66 by 39 ft), is in the west wing of the Palas. It is 13 metres (43 ft) tall and takes up the third and fourth floors. It was designed to look like a church in Munich. On three sides, it has colorful arches, ending in a curved area where the King's throne was supposed to be. However, the throne was never completed. The area for the throne is surrounded by paintings of Jesus, the Twelve Apostles, and six holy kings. The mural paintings were done by Wilhelm Hauschild. The floor mosaic was finished after the King's death. The chandelier looks like an old Byzantine crown.
The Throne Hall feels very sacred. The King wanted it to combine the Grail Hall from Parzival with a symbol of the divine right of kings. This was a way to show unlimited royal power, even though King Ludwig, as head of a constitutional monarchy, no longer had such power. The mix of sacred and royal is shown by the portraits of six holy kings in the curved area: Saint Louis of France, Saint Stephen of Hungary, Saint Edward the Confessor of England, Saint Wenceslaus of Bohemia, Saint Olaf of Norway, and Saint Henry, Holy Roman Emperor.
- Palace rooms (late 19th-century photochrom prints)
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Hall of the Singers
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Throne Hall
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Drawing room
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Study
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Dining room
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Bedroom
Besides the large ceremonial rooms, King Ludwig II had several smaller rooms for his own use. His private rooms are on the third floor of the palace, in the east wing of the Palas. They include eight living spaces and several smaller rooms. Even with the fancy decorations, these rooms feel quite modern to visitors today because of their moderate size and comfortable furniture. King Ludwig II didn't care about the grand, public life that earlier kings had.
The decorations, including wall paintings, tapestries, and furniture, usually show the King's favorite themes. These include the grail legend, the works of Wolfram von Eschenbach, and Richard Wagner's interpretations of them.
The drawing room, facing east, is decorated with scenes from the Lohengrin legend. The furniture, including a sofa, table, and armchairs, is cozy and inviting. Next to the drawing room is a small artificial grotto. This unusual room originally had an artificial waterfall and a rainbow machine. It connects to a small conservatory. The grotto represents the Hörselberg grotto from Wagner's Tannhäuser, just like the nearby study. The King had a similar, larger grotto built in the park of Linderhof Palace.
Across from the study is the dining room, decorated with themes of courtly love. Since the kitchen at Neuschwanstein is three floors below the dining room, a "wishing table" (a dining table that could disappear into the floor) like those at Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee was not possible. Instead, the dining room was connected to the kitchen by a service lift.
The bedroom next to the dining room and the small chapel are the only rooms in the palace that are still in the neo-Gothic style. The King's bedroom has a huge bed with beautiful carvings. Fourteen carvers worked for more than four years on the bed canopy, with its many small towers, and on the oak wall panels. It was in this room that Ludwig was arrested on the night of June 11-12, 1886. The small chapel next to it is dedicated to Saint Louis, after whom the King was named.
The servants' rooms are in the basement of the Palas. They are simply furnished with solid oak furniture. Each room has one table, one cabinet, and two beds, each 1.80 metres (5 ft 11 in) long. Translucent glass windows separated the rooms from the corridor. This allowed the King to enter and leave unseen. Servants were not allowed to use the main stairs. They had to use much narrower and steeper servants' stairs.
Visiting Neuschwanstein
Neuschwanstein welcomes almost 1.5 million visitors every year. It is one of the most popular tourist spots in Europe. For safety, you can only visit the palace on a 35-minute guided tour. No photos are allowed inside the castle. There are also special tours that focus on certain topics.
During the busy season, from June to August, Neuschwanstein can have up to 6,000 visitors per day. If you don't book tickets ahead of time, you might have to wait several hours. Even without a ticket, you can still walk up the long driveway to the castle and visit the grounds and courtyard. But you won't be allowed inside the castle. Tickets are only sold at the ticket center in Hohenschwangau. By As of 2008[update], over 60 million people had visited. In 2004, the castle made €6.5 million in revenue.
Neuschwanstein in Culture
Neuschwanstein is a worldwide symbol of the Romantic era. The palace has appeared in many movies, like Ludwig II (1955) and Ludwig (1972), which are about the King. It also appeared in the musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), the comedy Spaceballs, and the war drama The Great Escape (1963).
The castle was the inspiration for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle. It also inspired Cameran Palace in the Pokémon movie Lucario and The Mystery of Mew (2005) and other similar buildings. A character named Grace Nakimura visits it in the game The Beast Within: A Gabriel Knight Mystery (1996).
In 1977, Neuschwanstein Castle was featured on a West German postage stamp. In 2012, it appeared on a special €2 coin for a German coin series. In 2007, it was a finalist in the online vote for the New Seven Wonders of the World.
A meteorite that fell to Earth on April 6, 2002, near the Austrian border, was named Neuschwanstein after the palace. Three pieces were found: Neuschwanstein I (1.75 kg (3.9 lb)) and Neuschwanstein II (1.63 kg (3.6 lb)) on the German side, and Neuschwanstein III (2.84 kg (6.3 lb)) on the Austrian side. This meteorite is a rare type with a lot of pure iron.
Becoming a World Heritage Site?
As of 2015[update], Neuschwanstein and Ludwig's other palaces, Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee, are on Germany's list to become UNESCO World Heritage Sites. There's talk of them joining with other important palaces from the Romantic historicism period, like Schwerin Palace, to apply together.
Panoramas
See also
In Spanish: Neuschwanstein para niños
- List of castles in Bavaria
- List of castles in Germany
