Bavaria, Germany
The German State Home to Oktoberfest and Neuschwanstein Castle
Bavaria, Germany has rich history of kings and castles. Ludwig I helped transform Bavaria into a cultural capital, while his grandson, Ludwig II built Neuschwanstein.
Bavaria, where storybook tales come to life. Bavaria is located in Southern Germany, nesteled among forest and mountains. Today is it a top tourist attraction in Western Europe. Tourist flock to the most famous European castle of all, Neuschwanstein. They also come for the most famous beer festival of all, Oktoberfest. But Bavaria is more than beer and lederhosen. Once it was its own kingdom. Bavarian kings have helped shaped politics, learning in culture in Germany and beyond for hundreds of years.
Bavaria began as one of five principle duchies of Germany during the Middle Ages, ruled by the Agilofing family from 550-788 A.D. In 1180, Bavaria was given as a fief to the Witteslsbach family, who would rule until the end of WWI in 1918. During the second half of the Nineteenth Century, Bavaria sided with Austria in its war against Prussia (1866) then sided with Prussia after being defeated alongside Austria. It joined the new German Empire, along with Prussia, following was with France in 1870. During this time, King Ludwig II nearly bankrupted the Bavarian Government, building his fairy tale castles of Linderhof and Neuschwanstein, among others.
Son of King king Maximilian I and Wilhelmine of Hessen-Darmstadt, Ludwig I married Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen in October, 1810. The wedding was the basis for the popular celebration, “Oktoberfest” which still goes on today. Ludwig I was a benefactor of the arts and under his reign, Munich became a cultural center of Germany. Ludwig brought composers, poets, and writers to Munich, as well as scientists and architects. He also oversaw the completion of Germany’s first railroad line, in 1835. The Revolution of 1848 imposed new restrictions on the office of the king, and forced Ludwig to abdicate. Also affecting popular opinion of the king at the time, was Ludwig’s affair with a much younger dancer, Lola Montez, upon who he showered jewels, titles and estates. Ludwig died in 1868, at the age of 81. For twenty years he wandered his estates alone, nearly deaf, and no longer King of Bavaria.
Known as the “Fairy Tale King,” Ludwig II of Bavaria built three magnificent castles during his reign, as a way of escaping the unpleasantness of reality. Son of King Maximilian and Marie of Prussia, Ludwig came to throne after the death of his father in 1866. Ludwig II would further enhance the cultural ideas set forth by his grandfather and namesake, Ludwig I, by building three gorgeous palaces and playing the role of the “Fairy Tale King” to the fullest.
Bavaria and German Unification
The Struggle for unity among the German States in the 19th Century brought about an end to the Kingdom of Bavaria. Unable to cope economically, the southern German states, including Bavaria, joined with the new northern German Empire in 1871. The Prime Minister, Otto Von Bismarck, who dressed up this autocratic government in the façade of a democracy, was the unofficial leader. Through subsequent wars Bavaria maintained a semblance of autonomy, until after World War II, when it became a member of the Federal Republic of Germany.
