2023-04-14 09:55:00
Neuschwanstein Castle is the epitome of a magical idyll: surrounded by picturesque mountains and lakes, it stands on a cliff in the middle of the Bavarian Alps, and its pointed towers seem to pierce the blue sky. It is not surprising that the Bavarian king Ludwig II (Ludwig II), on whose orders this splendor was built, was known among the people as a “fabulous” and “lunar” ruler. The landscape itself looks like a scenery come to life, which is also the merit of the German theater artist Christian Jank, who created the art project and sketches of the castle.
“Ludwig II wanted to combine architecture, art and landscape into a single whole,” says Alexander Wiesneth of the Bavarian Palace Administration in an interview with DW.
Neuschwanstein was opened to paid visits to the curious in 1886, just a few weeks after the mysterious death of Ludwig II. The reason was an attempt to cover debts and compensate for the huge construction costs. A sad irony of fate: after all, the hermit king built a castle in solitude, as he desperately craved solitude.
By the way, the very idea of construction came to Ludwig during his trip to the medieval castle of Wartburg (Wartburg) near Eisenach in Thuringia and the French castle of Pierrefonds (Chateau de Pierrefonds), erected in the XIV century by Louis, Duke of Orleans.
In May 1868, the eccentric king wrote to his friend, the composer Richard Wagner: “I plan to rebuild the ruins of the old Hohenschwangau castle near the Pöllat Gorge in the original style of the old German knightly castles, and, I confess, I dream of settling there one day.”
Dedication to Wagner
Construction of the palace began in September 1869. Approximately 200 rooms were designed, as well as state-of-the-art technical innovations at the time: central heating, flush toilets, and a bell system for summoning servants. Things went slowly, and in 1873 only the building of the gate was completed, where Ludwig II moved. In total, the “moon king” lived in the castle for 172 days, and after his death, most of the construction work was stopped.
Ludwig II’s admiration for Wagner’s work was reflected in the design of the castle. Numerous paintings and frescoes in the rooms of the palace reflect motifs from the mythical and fairy-tale world of the Middle Ages. The influence of the composer’s last opera “Parsifal” is especially noticeable.
Repository of art stolen by the Nazis
Unfortunately, not only architectural solutions made the castle famous. During World War II, it served as a warehouse for the Nazis to store stolen art. This story is reflected in George Clooney’s 2014 film The Monuments Men.
Following the 1940 invasion of neighboring France by German troops, Hitler authorized Alfred Rosenberg and his Operational Headquarters (“Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg”), the Nazi organization involved in the removal of cultural property from the occupied territories, to keep records and confiscate significant cultural property of “orphaned Jewish property.”
Between 1940 and 1945, the loot was taken out and hidden by the Nazis throughout Europe, including in salt mines, monasteries and castles in Germany. Located far from Berlin and not far from the Austrian border, Neuschwanstein Castle became not only a warehouse, but also the headquarters of the robbers of Rosenberg.
Salvation of Masterpieces
When the Allies stormed Neuschwanstein in 1945, they found catalogues, slides and listings of more than 20,000 artworks and other items looted by the Nazis.
Among other things, jewelry and pieces of furniture belonging to the Rothschild family were found, as well as a masterpiece by the great Flemings, the Van Eyck brothers, a folding altar from the church of St. Bavo in Ghent (Sint Baafskathedraal), known as the Ghent Altar polyptych.
The hiding place in Neuschwanstein was discovered thanks to the art historian and member of the French Resistance Rose Valland (Rose Valland). She worked as curator of the Paris Museum of Jeu de Paume (Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume), which was a transit point before further distribution and shipment of treasures to Germany. Wallan scrupulously recorded all the information about the works of art, the addresses to which they were sent, the modes of transport, and passed all the data to the Resistance.
Towards the end of the war, the Allies established the “Munich Central Collecting Point”, the purpose of which was to return to the rightful owners of works of art stolen by the Nazis.
From the past to the future
Neuschwanstein was just one of the “palace projects” of Ludwig II. In parallel with it, the Linderhof palaces (Linderhof) in the Rococo style in the south of Bavaria, the Herrenchiemsee Palace or the “Bavarian Versailles” (Herrenchiemsee) and the Royal Manor on Schachen (Königshaus am Schachen), made in the style of a Swiss chalet, were built.
Received a lot of criticism from contemporaries during the life of Ludwig II, today these architectural monuments are one of the popular tourist destinations and symbols not only of Germany, but also of Europe. Not surprisingly, the palaces are now awaiting a decision on inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List, which will tentatively be made in 2025.
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