How Did a Mad King Design Disney's Castle?

in the Bavarian Alps of Germany. Disney was so impressed with the skyscraping, turrets and towers of this faux Romanesque structure that he used it as the model for Sleeping Beauty's Castle, the centerpiece of Disneyland and now the ubiquitous logo of Walt Disney Pictures. But if Disney had known the real story of Neusch von Stein and its fairy tale king, an eccentric opera fan who was declared a mad man before dying under mysterious circumstances, he might have

chosen a different castle. Neusch von Stein Castle is one of the most visited tourist destinations in Europe, welcoming more than six thousand visitors on busy day das in the summer. But the man who dreamed up the fantastical castle never intended for it to be open to the public. It began as an architectural love letter to the German composer Richard Wagner and evolved into a refuge for a reclusive

king who slowly lost his grip on reality. King Ludwig the Second never fit the mold of a stoic monarch. Born in eighteen forty five, he was raised in princely elegance in his father, Maximilian the Seconds castle Hohenschwangau, where the young royal quote enjoyed dressing up and took pleasure

in play acting. According to his mother Marie of Prussia, from an early age, Ludwig had a vivid imagination and a flair for the dramatic owen Schwangau, built in eighteen thirty two in the Gothic style, was decorated with paintings drawn from medieval German legends and poetry, and young Ludwig particularly identified with Luhang Green, a legendary knight of the Holy Grail who traveled on a boat pulled by swans.

When Maximilian the Second died suddenly in eighteen sixty four, Ludwig, then eighteen years old, was thrust into power unprepared for any serious political leadership. One of the first things Ludwig did as king was to invite his musical idol Wagner to come to Munich for an opera festival. Wagner was also obsessed with German medieval legends and an even written

opera version of the Luhan Green story in eighteen fifty. Wagner, who was in dire financial straits, eagerly accepted Ludwig's invitation, and the young king became one of the composer's chief patrons. When they met, Wagner didn't know what to make of the other worldly Ludwig, Wagner wrote, today, I was brought to him. He's unfortunately so beautiful and wise, soulful and lordly that I fear his life must fade away like a divine dream. In this base world. You cannot imagine

the magic of his regard. If he remains alive, it will be a great miracle. Wagner couldn't have predicted it, but just two years later, in eighteen six six, Bavaria and Austria suffered a humiliating defeat to Prussia in the Seven Weeks War, and Ludwig was stripped of all real power. It was then historians believe that Ludwig decided to retreat into a fantasy kingdom in the Alps dedicated to Wagner, an alternate reality in which he could play out his

operatic daydreams full of Christian nights and magical swans. Ludwig already had the perfect location picked out, a rocky promontory near his childhood castle with three hundred and sixty degree views of pristine alpine lakes, lush valleys, and towering peaks. He wrote a letter to Wagner describing his plans to

build a far more ambitious version of his father's Hoenschwangau. Quote, the location is one of the most beautiful to be found, wholly and unapproachable, a worthy temple for the divine friend who has brought salvation and true blessing to the world. To bring his vision to life, Ludwig enlisted a theatrical set designer and scene painter from Munich named Christian Young make some appropriately dramatic drawings of the new hohen Schwangau.

As Ludwig called it, it was meant to be an idealized version of a medieval castle, inspired by a visit to the legitimately medieval vartboard palace, but cranked up to

an eleven. Ludwig wanted two hundred well appointed rooms, a cavernous singers hall for opera performances or nate walled gardens, and even a night's bath akin to the ritual baths used by the Knights of the Holy Grail, But rather than being a complete throwback, the castle was to include the latest technological comforts, including electric lighting, flush toilets, central heating,

and an electric buzzer system for summoning servants. The first stone of Ludvig's dreamcastle was laid in eighteen sixty nine. He had written to Wagner that he hoped to move in in three years, but construction was still ongoing when Ludwig finally moved into the first completed section fifteen years later. By that point, the scale of the castle had been paired down significantly, and the project had taken on a

distinct the kiotic feel. Ludvig, a deeply pious Christian, had begun to identify himself more and more with the Arthurian hero Parceval. Another Night in the Quest of the Holy Grail in the Castle of Space, originally planned as an audience room for receiving guests was turned into a high domed throne room without a throne instead, its guilt walls and murals would serve as a whole of the Holy Grail.

Ludwig grew increasingly reclusive. He slept during the day and wandered the castle at night, had hire musicians and actors for private concerts and operas, and during the various snowy winters, journey out for night time sleigh rides in an elaborate custom made sleigh, sometimes in medieval costume. By the still unfinished castle had gone wildly over budget, and Ludwig had tried the patience of his foreign creditors. When he couldn't repay his debts, the foreign banks seized the property and

threatened to bankrupt the state of Bavaria. Ludwig's ministers, largely to protect state assets, accused the king of insanity and removed him from the throne. Ludwig had clearly shown some borderline delusional behavior, and his obsession with building his new ho and Schwangau A plus four other lavish personal palaces and homes was all consuming. Now. Whether or not he had any mental disorder that would be diagnosable by today's standards,

is still debated. Ludwig's ultimate fate is also shrouded in mystery. Days after Ludwig was deemed insane by the state appointed psychiatrist and locked up in a drab castle, he was found dead, apparently drowned in waist deep water. Ludwig's death at only forty years old would have been ruled a suicide if not for one gruesome detail. His psychiatrist was floating dead next to him. No one knows exactly what happened.

The castle was renamed Neich von Stein, a German for new Swanstone after Ludwig's death, as a homage to the tragic and eccentric figure known as the fairy tale King. Ironically, the debt ridden castle, opened to the public just seven weeks after Ludwig's death in eighteen eighty six, has paid for itself many times over thanks to the one point four million tourists who visit every year. Today's episode was written by Dave Ruse and produced by Tyler Clang. Brain

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