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Frequently asked Questions english - german - italian - 日本語 Ludwig II of Bavaria Content > Home < books about Neuschwanstein country, Ludwig and his Castles |
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Was King Ludwig shot? TOP
| King Ludwig’s death has remained a mistery and it will be always this way. But today we can read many declarations by eye witnesses, which give us evidence that it wasn’t a suicide. The King didn’t want to die. He was betrayed by people, who cared just for their personal interest. They preferred to kill their King than to loose power and carreer opportunities. In a letter of his, Ludwig wrote once following quotation from Schiller, that he liked to apply to himself: "I want to remain an eternal mistery, to myself and to others". Destiny wanted that these words became true |
Was Castle Neuschwanstein project completed? TOP
| No, it wasn’t at all. The laying of the foundation stone took place on September 5th, 1869. According to the project, the building schould be ready in 1893. The "Kemenate" was built in simpler way only after Ludwig’s death, but it remained empty indoor, like most of the rooms in the castle. The chapel building, t. i. a wonderful church projected to be like a temple of the Gral in the middle of the higher courtyard, is completely missing. (It’s still possible to see the shape of its foundations in the courtyard’s floor). Even the north tower isn’t so high as it was to be in the original plan. |
Was there really a telephone in the Castle? TOP
| Yes, a true telephone was present. And every possible modern technology of that time was applied there. E.g. an electrical device which made it possible to the King to call a servant from his rooms. The servant could understand where the call was coming, dependind on what light was on. And the castle had already central heating and running water, which was taken from a mountain source about 600 feet higher than the castle. But the most astonishing devices are certainly in the kitchen. There one can find warm and cold running water, an elevator, a plate warmer where the warm air coming from the oven reached the plates, and even a completely automatic spit built following a project by Leonardo da Vinci. |
Why is just the throne in the Throne-room missing? TOP
| When Ludwig suddenly died, the throne had only been ordered, but wasn’t already made. In order to save money, the order was unfortunately revoked. All what remains is a couple of drawings. The empty place in the throne-room looks like a symbol of Ludwig’s impossible dream to establish a realm by the Grace of God in the late XIX century. |
Why didn’t Ludwig get married? Didn’t he like women? TOP
| On the contrary, he did. He liked every human being, either man or woman, who gave him the opportunity of deep and long friendship. Just unloyalty and deceit were unbearable for him. His family and his people as well had the desire to see him married, in order to give a follower to the Country. But he couldn’t accept a "political" marriage and eventually broke the engagement with his cousin Sophie, whom he liked but didn’t love. During his short life, he was on very good terms with many women. Among them we can find artists, whom he admired, like for example the hungarian actress Lila von Bulyowsky, Marie Dahn-Hausmann, or the singer Mathilde Mallinger. His letter exchange with his governess Sybilla Meilhaus, and with Cosima Wagner as well, was never interrupted. And his relation with his cousin Elisabeth (Sisi) certainly was the deeper and closest they were allowed to. |
How did Ludwig decide to build Castle Neuschwanstein? TOP
| When Ludwig was a young Prince, he spent much time, expecially during the Summer, in his father’s castle, Hohenschwangau. Like Maximilian II had built this castle on the ancient ruins of a Middle Age one, Ludwig as well wanted to bring the ancient ruins of Vorder- and Hinterhohenschwangau to new life. During his long lonley rides he liked to reach those high ruins. There he enjoyed the wonderful sight and dreamt of his "Neue Burg". About one year before the laying of the foundation stone, Ludwig wrote following words to Wagner. "I have a mind to let the old castle ruins of Hohenschwangau, near the Pöllat Gorge, be new rebuilt in the authentic style of ancient German knights’ castles… The spot is one of the most beautiful one can find, so sacred and inaccessible". Who has already seen Castle Neuschwanstein cannot but agree with the King’s opinion! |
To what extent has Ludwig’s help been important for Wagner? TOP
| Whithout Ludwig we’d have at present no Ring, no Parsifal,
and no Bayreuth at all. When the young King called Wagner near him, the composer was
desperate. He had so huge debts. More than once he had been thinking of suicide. But
Ludwig appeared. And he gave him not merely the great sums he needed to solve his economic
problems. He also gave him hope and courage. In one of his first letters to Wagner, Ludwig
wrote: "I want to remove every low worry about everyday life from above your head forever".
When Wagner wanted to have Cosima Lizst near, who was still married with his best scholar,
Ludwig intentionally pretended to know nothing about the true nature of the love relation
that was already existing between them, because he wanted to help his friend as much as
possible. He even began to correspond with Cosima, in order to be informed about
Richard’s true desires and needs. And when Wagner decided to create his own theatre
in Bayreuth instead of in Munich, Ludwig was able to forget himself and he gave him once
more the necessary sum to let his project come true. And the King had already financial
difficulties to support his own buidings! 1865 already, in a letter to Wagner, Ludwig wrote this prophetical sentence: "Someday, when we both are no more existing since long, our work will shine for the late following generations as a bright example which is going to charme the centuries. And every heart will be burning in enthusiasm for divine, eternally living art!". |
Was the relationship between Ludwig and Bismarck a good one? TOP
| Yes, absolutely! Even if they had completely different visions of life, they were very near each other and their relationship got almost to true friendship. The "Iron Chancellor" always wanted to have Ludwig's portrait hanging in his study. And Ludwig trusted Bismarck during his whole life. When he had his most difficult problems, one of his last letter was addressed to Bismarck. The King asked him for advice against his betrayers and Bismarck gave his best one without exitation. Even if they met only once in life, when Ludwig was still Crown Prince, their correspondence went on uninterrupted till Ludwig's death. Bismarck admired the young King and was convinced, he was able to understand government "better than all his ministers" (1883). Near to the end, he declared he had the impression that the Bavarian ministers wanted "to slay" the King because they couldn't maintain their position any longer. |
What have you found in the Königswinkel, which is not available in any other place?. TOP
| Well, here the balance between nature and culture is something really
incredible, not easy to be find elsewhere. If I make a trip to an island in the Pacific, I
know I’m going to find incontaminate nature there too. This is pleasant, but after a
few days I’m fed up and I’m missing the world of human culture with all its
great values. Or if I go to Rome or to Paris, I enjoy the presence of so many wonderful
artistic works, but soon I begin to desire the freedom of nature. Here, in the "Königswinkel", my spirit finds peace, because of the harmony of a wonderful landscape together with a very worthy cultural inheritance. Body and soul, senses and feelings, live their best possible relationship here, so that one receives light and strength from the other. The consequence of this is an interior peace which is simply unforgettable. It hasn’t been merely by chance if more than one head of Bavaria, like Maximilian I in the XV century and two Kings in the last century, t. i. Maximilian II and his son Ludwig I, chose just this spot in the whole country to establish in it their favourite refuge… |
.Has this harmony any effect on people living there too? TOP
| Yes, of course! It’s because of it that here most people are so friendly and ready to help. Some exceptions are possible, but as far as this is concerned, my personal positive experiences are so numberous that I could go on hours telling you about people who have really helped me and who let my permanence here be a golden one. Only very seldom, over here, you meet those restless people you can see in every large town of the world. Here they’re still able to enjoy life. Perhaps the best way to realize this is to enter a local breewery. They happily sit down together, chatting in a very good mood and you can join them without problems. Good frish beer and home-made cakes play their role as well. |
How is food here?. TOP
| Great! Here you can really eat "as a King"! Every dish, from
the horse d’oeuvre to the dessert, is a high quality one, made with good and
healthful ingredients, normally local products. And the price you pay for all this is
never a high one if compared with the quality. The top are cakes! Heavenly to taste and to
look at. I’m really mad for them! Something very pleasant as well is the total freedom you have to decide at what time you like to eat. You can ask for a hot dog at 10 AM or order a cup of coffe with a slide of cake for luch and for sure nobody will look at you with suspicion or curiosity. This is something unthinkable in Countries like Greece, Spain or Italy, where it’s even possible to find the kitchen closed till 9:30 PM. Here, on the contrary, you can often see a board announcing "Warm meals all over the day". Just another way to declare the local motto: "Live and let live". |
Why would you like to spend here your life?. TOP
| Here the world is a lovely place and life makes sense, either under
social or natural respect. It’s a real human one. When I’m on a voyage and far
from here, I feel nostalgy of this Country because it’s always waiting for you with
open arms and tells you "Welcome home!". Then every type of public service works very well and this is another important feature because everyone feel cared and also safe and protected. Very different from some voyage experiences I’ve had in recent times. Shop-assistants are always friendly – even if, well, sometimes a little sleepy – and I like the charming atmosphere they can create. Every job is performed with such a positive disposition that you often find yourself desiring to do the same. This is nice, isn’t it? Here life appears worth to be lived. It makes sense, like in old times, when Royal Lords decided to create their very personal refuge in this spot. |
Is it possible to make good photos here?. TOP
| Absolutely! The "corner of the Kings" is a true photograps country. In Neuschwanstein Country every hobby-photograph gets professional results. Landscape, houses, the Royal Castles, offer so many wonderful scenaries that every snapshot can appear like a masterpiece. And this doesn’t depend on the weather! There are lots of nice places all over the world, whose beauty exists only when the sun shines. Here in the Neuschwanstein Country I’ve made some of my best photos in the mist, even better ones than those made in the shining sunlight in Toscana ! The same is true as far as seasons are concerned. During the Winter the landscape is even more fascinating than during the Summer. And if you think of the many flowers in the Spring or of the great colors of Fall, well, then it’s really difficult to decide which one the best is. |
