Neuschwanstein Castle is without a doubt the most visited castle in Germany, with more than 1 million people visiting southern Bavaria every year, according to official figures. Ludwig II, King of Bavaria, sometimes referred to as “Crazy”, “Abnormal”, “Swan” and “Myth”, builds the palace of his dreams based on the Gothic revival style, not far from He built the Hohenschwangau cliffs.
The location of Neuschwanstein Castle fits perfectly with the view of the Strait of Pollat Gorge to the west, and this is what gives it a charming image. Whichever way you look at the castle, you will definitely be thrilled by its special architecture and location. Maybe that’s why you shouldn’t be so surprised of choosing this design for Cinderella Castle in Disneyland.
From the lexical point of view of Neuschwanstein Castle; It means a new castle made of new swan stone. In the ancient mythology of this land, the swan is the symbol of the heralds of the counties of “Schwangau” and also in Christianity, this animal is mentioned as a symbol of originality and purity. This castle, which was renamed Neuschwanstein Castle after the death of King Ludwig.
King Ludwig II as a mysterious figure; He was heavily influenced by the famous operas of Richard Wagner, and in the decoration of this palace, the stories and concepts of the operas “Tristan and Isolde”, “Sigurd”, “The swan knight Lohengrin”, ” Parsifal and Minnesinger Tannhauser” are used. Of course, it should also be borne in mind that the decorations and motifs used in the walls of this castle are mainly related to myths and epic characters, and Richard Wagner was inspired by these motifs and concepts in his operas.
During the Middle Ages, two small castles were located on what is now the Neuschwanstein Castle on top of rugged, rough cliffs. Ludwig II knew and loved the ruins of these two castles as a child. In addition, Hohenschuang Castle is the royal residence of the royal family, and Wartburg Castle is said to have been the original model for the construction of the Neuschwanstein Castle. However, the design and decoration of the exterior of the castle, after its final completion, is more like the Chateau de Pierrefonds in France.
During the so-called Romantic period in the early 19th century, many medieval castles were rebuilt in Germany. As mentioned earlier, Ludwig II had a strong interest in Richard Wagner and his work, and from childhood he filled his time with the imaginary and mysterious world of myths and dream characters of Wagner’s works. In a letter to Wagner, the young king writes: I intend to rebuild the ruined castle in the Hohenschuang area near Polat George based on the original style of the German Knights’ castles. I must admit that my goal is to live in this castle one day in the future.
At the end of 1873, the construction of a part of the castle, which was built of red bricks, was completed, and thus the king was able to stay in this part, which was furnished by his order during his visits to the region. He wanted to monitor the progress of the building. In 1884, despite the fact that the construction work on the castle had not yet been completed, the king moved to this place, after which it took almost two years to build and complete the decoration of the complex, especially in the exterior; However, the interior design section was never completed.
At the time of Ludwig II’s death on June 13, 1886, construction work on Neuschwanstein Castle was still a long way off. The bitter irony behind the construction of Neuschwanstein castle is that Ludwig designed it to spend his time in comfort, and that the castle was supposed to be his safe haven, while only two weeks after his death, the castle doors were open to the public. A 90-meter chapel with a North African architectural style hall can be considered one of the parts that was half-finished and stopped after Ludwig’s death. However, other parts of the castle were completed after the death of the king, with a very simple style and context.
According to the original plan of the castle, more than 200 rooms were to be built at the western end of the castle, but only 15 of these rooms were built and completed. The singing room can be considered the largest castle room, which is 27 meters long and 10 meters wide. This room, known as King Ludwig’s beloved room, was inspired by the Sangersaal in Wartburg Castle. The royal room where the throne is located has dimensions of 20 meters by 12 meters and is the second largest room in the palace.
Despite the fact that in the appearance of the castle, an attempt has been made to use medieval features, Ludwig used the latest technologies of his time to build his favorite castle, including an electric alarm system, and a heating system and telephone.
