Ludwig II ruled Bavaria from 1864-1886. During this period, the kingdom became part of the unified German Empire. The monarch himself was little involved in political affairs, and devoted much more time to the art and construction of castles. In recent years, he became unsociable and was eventually declared mentally ill and lost power. A few days after losing his title, Ludwig drowned in a lake under mysterious circumstances.
Childhood
August 25, 1845 was born the future King Ludwig 2 of Bavaria. The boy's parents and childhood were associated with Munich. His father was Crown Prince Maximilian of the Wittelsbach dynasty, who later became King Maximilian II. Mother Maria Friederika was the granddaughter of the Prussian monarch Friedrich Wilhelm II.
In 1848, a series of revolutions took place throughout Germany. The child's grandfather, Ludwig I, had to make concessions and abdicate. Power by inheritance passed to Maximilian, and his son became crown prince. The boy was transported to the secluded castle of Hohenschwangau, where he grew up. What was the future Ludwig 2 of Bavaria fond of? The monarch's childhood passed among books and music. He became interested in art andespecially opera. He was a man of refined taste who could only exist in the 19th century, when German culture was at its peak.
As a child, the monarch received mainly liberal arts education. For 8 hours a day, he studied Latin, Greek and French, as well as literature and history. The last two subjects were of particular interest to the child, he paid the most attention to them. The heir read a lot and most of all loved medieval legends and French literature. A good memory made him one of the most erudite people of his time. The crown prince loved the nature of his native Bavaria. At the age of 12, he made his first big hike in the mountains. These solitary voyages had a great influence on his character.
Patron of the Arts
In 1864, Maximilian II died. Power took 18-year-old Ludwig II of Bavaria. The accession to the throne took place immediately after the funeral ceremony on the occasion of the death of his father. The young monarch had little interest in state affairs, foreign policy and intrigue. By the age of 18, he simply did not have time to prepare for the throne. Therefore, instead of state affairs, Ludwig immediately devoted himself to the development of Bavarian art.
The King met Richard Wagner and gave him significant financial support. The composer, receiving large subsidies from the treasury, experienced the period of his greatest creative activity. The premieres of his operas "Rheingold Gold", "Valkyrie", "Tristan and Isolde" and "The Mastersingers of Nuremberg" were held at the Munich National Theater, wherethe king himself was present. Ludwig's large expenses for the maintenance of Wagner made the latter extremely unpopular among the inhabitants of the capital. In 1865, the monarch had to meet the public and send the composer out of Bavaria. However, this did not prevent them from maintaining their friendship.
When Ludwig took power, it turned out that he was completely unprepared for his new role. He never had a mentor who could explain to him how to solve government problems. Therefore, the king had his own ideas about what is good and what is bad for his country. The image of the monarch in Ludwig merged with the images of medieval heroes, knights and characters in Schiller's dramas. The imprint of a dreamy and impressionable nature was superimposed on all this.
Austrian ally
In 1866, a new war broke out in Germany. The country, which consisted of many kingdoms and principalities, was divided into two irreconcilable camps. In those years, it was decided which state the whole of Germany would be united around. The main opponents in this conflict were Prussia and Austria.
Ludwig II decided to side with the Habsburg Empire. He himself was never interested in military affairs and therefore delegated the authority to manage the army to his numerous ministers and advisers, leaving for Switzerland. It took Prussia only three months to win. Under the humiliating terms of the peace treaty, Bavaria had to pay large reparations to Berlin and hand over the cities of Bad Orb and Gersefeld.
Failed wedding
After the lost war with Prussia, the king only once made a tour of his country, visiting its northern regions. He soon lost interest in politics and began to lead the state through officials. Meanwhile, the monarch became the object of universal criticism because of his unwillingness to marry and have an heir.
Why did Ludwig II of Bavaria hesitate so much? Parents in the years of his youth tried to arrange an engagement, but to no avail. Finally, in 1867, the ruler announced that he would soon marry his cousin Sophia. The marriage of such close relatives could be forbidden by the Catholic Church, but the Pope, contrary to expectations, gave his permission for the wedding.
Preparations for the celebrations have begun. An ultra-expensive carriage was created by state order, and a portrait of Queen Sofia appeared on postage stamps. But at the last moment, the wedding was canceled by Ludwig 2 of Bavaria himself. Photos from the long-awaited celebrations never appeared in the newspapers, and the monarch remained a bachelor until the end of his days.
Bavaria is part of the German Empire
In 1870, the Prussian king announced the creation of the German Empire. Bavaria joined after Ludwig convinced Otto von Bismarck. The prime minister promised the monarch large cash dividends. In addition, Bavaria sent 55 thousand soldiers to help Prussia during the Franco-Prussian War, after which the empire was created.
Ludwig understood that if his country accepted neutrality, then in the future it would cost her independence. Prussia was anywaythe largest German force and sooner or later would have swallowed up the neighbors. For Bismarck, the support of Bavaria was extremely important, since only the allied Munich could calm the hostile political factions in Berlin itself.
Ludwig had many friends in Vienna, but in the end decided to go in the wake of Berlin politics. He managed to negotiate favorable conditions for Munich with Bismarck. It was thanks to Ludwig that the kingdom retained significant political autonomy and for many years was the most independent part of the empire. Even today, the population of this region rightfully considers itself not just Germans, but primarily natives of their native Bavaria. On January 18, 1871, at the Palace of Versailles, in occupied Paris, King Wilhelm of Prussia was crowned Emperor. Ludwig did not attend that solemn ceremony.
Builder King
During his reign, Ludwig initiated the construction of a dozen castles. All of them were used as residences of the monarch. The most famous of them (Neuschwanstein) was built in 1884. Materials for it were brought from all over Germany. Ludwig II of Bavaria, whose castles were built according to individual projects, decided to use images inspired by scenes from Richard Wagner's operas to decorate this residence. The monarch discussed sketches and ideas for the halls with the composer.
Much later, Neuschwanstein became a center of tourism. Today, Bavaria is making huge profits by attracting visitors from all over the world who want to visit thisamazing place. Even Pyotr Tchaikovsky was fascinated by the atmosphere and beauty of the castle. They inspired the composer to compose the ballet "Swan Lake". In modern popular culture, Neuschwanstein is best known for its mock-up being reproduced at Disneyland. The logo of the famous cartoon studio also includes a silhouette of a castle. Other residences built by Ludwig II of Bavaria are also popular. The personal life of the king was secluded, so he built castle after castle (Linderhof, a manor on Schahen, Herrenchiemse), where he hid from others. Today, all these places are tourist centers. There you can not only visit any royal halls, but also buy a souvenir token, the medal of Ludwig II of Bavaria and other souvenirs.
Monarch closedness
In the last years of his life, Ludwig II of Bavaria began to lead an unsociable lifestyle. He retired to Neuschwanstein, his most famous castle. Because of this, the ministers and other statesmen of the country, in order to get the signature of the monarch in the documents, had to travel to the king far into the mountains. Of course, many were unhappy with these new arrangements.
Isolated Ludwig 2 of Bavaria cut off many of his personal contacts. Friends began to move away from him. The last close person of the king was his cousin and Empress Elisabeth of Austria. She, just like her brother, faced rejection in her country and lived aloof from others, periodically visiting her native Bavaria. Ludwig lived at night and slept only in daylight. Because of thishabits he became known as the "Moon King".
The last time the monarch officially appeared in public was in 1876. He attended the opening of the new Bayreuth Festival organized by Richard Wagner. In the future, Ludwig 2 of Bavaria began to behave rather ambiguously. He began to take an irresponsible attitude to affairs, because of which the treasury was empty, and her debts continued to grow. Due to lack of funds, the king has temporarily suspended the construction of his new castles.
Illness rumors
The tragic and fatal mistake of Ludwig was his decision to remove from himself the last two trusted confidants - personal secretaries Schneider and Zingler. The monarch began to transmit his instructions through the valets, and not in writing, but orally, which became fertile ground for slander, lies and slander of the king's entourage in the future.
The longer the king lived aloof in his residence, the more all kinds of rumors arose about his mental illness. Perhaps Ludwig 2 of Bavaria behaved unnaturally due to the effects of drugs on the body. For example, he used chloroform to relieve frequent toothaches.
Mental problems were in several representatives of the Wittelsbach dynasty and may have been hereditary. Ludwig's brother and his successor Otto I had similar symptoms, due to which, during his reign, decisions were made by regents. Relatives differently evaluated the rumors about the madness of the owner of Neuschwanstein. Cousin Elizabeth considered Ludwig an eccentric person who livedin your own dream world. However, the empress had no doubts about his sanity.
Conflict with government
Ministers thought differently. King Ludwig 2 of Bavaria became a serious problem for them. Because of his aloofness, the state system on its top floor was paralyzed. In June 1886, a council of physicians was convened. Experts declared the monarch mentally ill. At the same time, they used only the testimony of witnesses, but did not examine the patient himself.
But the personal doctor of Ludwig Franz Karl Gershter refused to sign this paper and recognize him as crazy. In 1886, after the death of the monarch, he published a book of memoirs in which he questioned the verdict of the commission and mental illness. Because of this publication, Gershter had to endure persecution from the authorities, and as a result he moved to Leipzig.
June 9, Ludwig was officially incapacitated by the government. According to the laws in this case, the throne should have passed to the regent. At night, the state commission arrived in Neuschwanstein, where Ludwig 2 of Bavaria was. The last years of his life he did not leave this castle. The commission was supposed to send the monarch for treatment. However, its members were not allowed into the residence. They had to return to Munich.
Deprivation of power
King, realizing the danger of the situation, decided to fight the ministers with the help of the media. He wrote an open letter, which he sent to all the capital's newspapers. All of them, except for one, were intercepted on the way. Appeal printedonly one newspaper, but on the eve of the release of the issue, the printing house was sealed, and the issue was withdrawn. The government foresaw in advance how to cut off the monarch from supporters.
Besides newspapers, King Ludwig II of Bavaria wrote to other German politicians. His telegram only reached Prime Minister Bismarck. He advised the monarch to go to Munich and speak to the people with a statement about the betrayal of the ministers. Ludwig did not have time to follow this advice.
A day later, a new commission arrived in Neuschwanstein. This time the doctors managed to get into the castle. A lackey, who had betrayed the king, helped them infiltrate. Ludwig was declared compulsory treatment in a psychiatric clinic. In addition, the government spokesman read out the specific claims of the ministers. They accused the monarch of misappropriation of funds (first of all, the money went to the construction of castles), non-participation in the life of Bavaria and homosexual relationships. Ludwig was not married, had no children, but he had many favorites (for example, an actor from Vienna, Josef Kainz).
Death
In fact, the arrested Ludwig was sent to Berg Castle, located on the shores of Lake Starnberg. On June 13, 1886, accompanied by psychiatrist Bernhard von Gudden, he went for a walk in the park. They also had two orderlies with them, but the professor sent them back to the castle. After this episode, no one saw von Gudden and the deposed king alive. When they did not return to Berg a few hours later, the commandant began looking for them.
Soon there weretwo bodies were discovered - they were a professor and Ludwig 2 of Bavaria. The biography of the monarch was ambiguous, and the conclusion about his mental illness gave the government reason to assume that the king had committed suicide. Von Gudden drowned with him, trying to save a desperate patient. This version has become official. The doctors who last saw Wittelsbach said that he did not show any signs of insanity and behaved adequately. In society, a widespread version has become that everything that happened was a political assassination. The government thus got rid of an inconvenient monarch. None of these theories have solid evidence, so the mystery of the last minutes of Ludwig's life remains unsolved today.
The king was buried in Munich, in the church of St. Michael. He was succeeded by his younger brother Otto I.
