The political reason for building is: in 1866 Bavaria, allied with Austria, had lost a war against the expanding Prussia. Bavaria was forced to accept a "defensive and offensive alliance", which removed the king's right to dispose over his army in case of war. From 1866, therefore, Ludwig II was no longer a sovereign ruler. This limitation was the biggest misfortune of his life. In 1867 he began planning his own kingdom, in the form of his castles and palaces, where he could be a real king. However Ludwig II died in 1886, the "New Castle" was still not complete.

In my opinion, the legend of the castle is more attractive than its present looking, as noisy tourists and "good-looking" body.

Copyright by Zhang Weijie @ 2005