A King’s folly?
We are lucky enough to live near Füssen in the Allgäu, Bavaria. This is where King Ludwig built Schloss Neuschwanstein as his retirement home. Sadly, he never lived to inhabit it, dying in somewhat mysterious circumstances before it was completed.
His death may have had something to do with the astronomical amount he spent on it, yet ironically, it was a magnificent long-term marketing coup, for today it is one of Europe’s most popular tourist attractions. Millions visit it each year, and for the Japanese tourist on his one and only lifetime visit to Europe it is top of the list of sights.
So, was it a humongous folly and waste of money or a shrewd investment that has given pleasure to countless millions since 1886?
Sometimes in life, it is difficult to be categorical about certain things ….. and one can’t help wondering, will Britain’s Millenium Dome one day rival the Schloss?
Here’s another picture of the Castle and one of the Dome – just to help you answer that last question …
Learning from Dogs 
From what I have read and recall, the king deliberately diverted the military budget of Bavaria towards castle building. At the time, the Prussian oligarchy thought that it was a folly not to prepare the next round of war of the Second German Reich, a dictatorship, against the French republic, a democracy.
A modern interpretation of this artistic pursuit views it as an act of courageous resistance, and considers that it was Bismarck, and many of the little hands helping him, who were insane, not Ludwig. Sure enough, within 4 years Bismarck was thrown out by the young crippled Kaiser, a genuinely mentally unbalanced character, who viewed himself as Queen Victoria’s preferred grandchild, and could not wait to affirm his military glory on the world’s stage… The new Kaiser found Bismarck not fascist enough for his taste. The new Kaiser would soon spend a fortune building a high sea fleet, in the hope of defeating the Royal Navy (not to forget the Marine Nationale), and a giant army, to fight simultaneously the French republic and the Russian empire, while overrunning neutral democracies to get to Paris.
Patrice Ayme
http://patriceayme.wordpress.com/
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ualll
it´s beautiful
wonderful
well.i always love germany
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Patrice
As usual a wonderfully-erudite and fascinating addition from your good self ….
I am torn between admiration for the sheer, grandiose folly and desire to create something of beauty and the feeling that such vast sums should go towards the starving masses in general and on – for example – health and education in particular. I have the same feeling when I look at gigantic cathedrals.
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I passed on Patrice’s comments to a German friend who takes a keen interest in these things and is well-informed …. here is his reply to me today:
I agree with the author concerning King Ludwig II. I think he was not crazy but centuries ahead of his times.
When in Germany and above all in Prussia spread stupid nationalism – at that times “normal” – , he was a fond admiror of the Bourbon Kings of France, the kings of the “arch-enemies”, an built castles to their honours in Herrenchiemsee and Linderhof. And he fostered technical progress, not for wars but for civilian and artistic purposes.
The first Siemens electrical light on a vehicle (it was his wunderful state snow sledge on which he used to do excursions at Linderhof and Neuschwanstein). One of the first artificial illumination projects in Germanywas the Lohengrin Grotto in Linderhof.
He even ordered to develop the idea of “flying machines” for every day use:
In Hohenschwangau he started a project to build Montgolfier balloons on ropes in order to transport goods and persons to his castles.
He used to talk to his favourite trees. Today we know that this strong relationship to other creatures or even plants are a sign of deep feeling of “One-ness”, a cosmic conciousness, which is seen as a basis for understanding and peace within oneself, with others, neighbours and nations, and even with nature, earth and the universe.
This and many other ideas cost him his freedom. It was quite easy for his enemies to call him crazy, neurotic and even psychotic, not of this world.
No wonder…
I think he was strange, shy, but not ill. Maybe a borderline case, maybe too idealistic, maybe too much a utopian thinker and “feeler”
if this word is allowed.
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Chris, Your German friend sounds like an interesting person. Appreciate his comments.
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