King Ludwig II and My Two Favorite Castles

19th century/Basje posted on her delightfully informative blog on the Victoria Era an article today about a German king whom some call "Mad King Ludwig." If the term "mad" or "insane" are too harsh for him, Ludwig II of the Bavaria (1845-1886) was certainly an eccentric and a Romantic. He commissioned several fairy tale like castles, but the most famous of them all is Neuschwanstein Castle which is my first favorite castle in the world. The official website for the castle can be visited here.

Ludwig was inspired to build Neuschwanstein because of his friendship with the composer Richard Wagner.

My second favorite castle is the Alcazar or Segovia Castle in Segovia, Spain.

The Alcazar was first built during Moorish times. Over the centuries it was repeatedly renovated. Throughout the Middle Ages it was the favorite residence of the rulers of Castile. It was also one of the key fortresses in the defense of the region. One of the last major renovations was done during the reign of Philip II.

(As an aside, I am trying to finish a rather bland biography of the life of this king. The book is written by Henry Kamen who presents a different portrait of the king than the usual one of the cold-blooded, religious fanatic making human torches of heretics whereever he was present. The traditional Philip that has come down to us is the one more recently presented in the movie Elizabeth: The Golden Age starring Cate Blanchette and the Spanish actor Jordi Molla as Philip. What is wrong with Kamen's book is that it speaks too much about King Philip's administrative duties, particularly about his always being flooded with paper work. Otherwise, I have read worse. Still this one has been a slow go.)

Neuschwanstein and the Alcazar are in my opinion examples of perfect castles. Both are built on high, which give them an otherworldly affect. Both look like they came straight out of a fairytale. I hope that I can eventually visit both castles one day.