Bavaria is the kingdom of castles in Germany – in the truest sense of the word. In addition to fairytale castles such as Blutenburg, King Ludwig II also exploited his wealth like no other. To this day, you can find beautiful places around Munich that were built by the famous “fairytale king”. These include the hidden Rose Island, where he met with Sisi of Austria. But Linderhof Palace is also one of his most special retreats that you have to see. Since this year, it has even been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
“Small” but beautiful: Linderhof Palace by King Ludwig II.
Small things are not really associated with King Ludwig II, who lived between pomp and ostentation. Perhaps this is why Linderhof Palace is worth a mention: it is actually the smallest of the three palaces he had built in southwest Bavaria. But it is also the only one that he completed and lived in intensively.
The palace was built between 1869 and 1880 , modeled on French pleasure palaces, particularly those in Versailles. And unlike most of King Ludwig II’s building projects, Linderhof was not only intended for representation, but also served him as a private retreat.
The little-known royal individualism
Linderhof was Ludwig II’s “castle for himself”. The entire building and its rooms are strongly tailored to his person. You will find huge bedchambers with a golden barrier, which was never actually used for audiences. Ludwig was a night person; he slept during the day and stayed in his “hall of mirrors” at night, where the candlelight appeared as an “endless avenue” thanks to the clever arrangement of mirrors.
The entire grounds of Linderhof Palace are a veritable open-air museum of exotic architecture: in addition to the artificial grotto, you will also find romantic waterfalls and gardens. And the Moorish Kiosk with the famous peacock throne and the Moroccan House are part of the grounds – both original buildings from world exhibitions that Ludwig brought to Bavaria. He thus brought oriental and fairytale motifs to the Bavarian mountains.
The Venus Grotto and technical innovations
The artificial Venus Grotto in the park was already spectacular in Ludwig’s time and still is today: it is an artificial stalactite cave that was built in just two years from 1875. At 90 meters long and up to 14 meters high, it was the largest artificial grotto of the 19th century. Its sole purpose: to provide a stage for King Ludwig II.
The “fairytale king” wanted to recreate opera scenes with as perfect an illusion as possible. The grotto is modeled on a cave on the island of Capri and designed after Richard Wagner’s opera “Tannhäuser”. The stage set could not be more spectacular! Ludwig II had an electric power station built especially for the lighting. This meant that Linderhof was already equipped with electric light in the 1870s, although electricity only arrived in Munich 20 years later.
Today, the palace can be visited – and should definitely be! Take part in a guided tour and feel like a king in his castle. It’s worth booking tickets in advance, as a tour of the palace is very popular.