Linderhof Palace

Ludwig II, who was crowned king in 1864, began his building activities in 1867/68 by laying the foundation stone of Neuschwanstein Castle. In 1868 he was already making his first plans for Linderhof. Linderhof is the smallest of the three palaces built by King Kudwig II of Bavaria and the only one which he lived to see completed. Although Linderhof is much smaller than Versailles, it is evident that the palace of the French Sun-King Louis IV (who was an idol for Ludwig) was its inspiration.

Eairy-tale-king Ludwig already knew the area around Linderhof from his youth when he had accompanied his father King Maximilian II of Bavaria on his hunting trips in the Bavarian Alps. When Ludwig II became King in 1864, he inherited the hunting lodge (Königshäuschen) from his father, and in 1869 began enlarging the building. It was enlarged by Georg Dollmann between 1870 and 1872 with a U-shaped complex centred on the King's Bedchamber. Like its predecessor, the new building was a wooden post-and-infill construction. It was not until 1874 that the exterior façade was clad in stone, and the old hunting lodge was taken down and rebuilt in the park. The palace was then completed with the Hall of Mirrors and Staircase and furnished in the style of the "second Rococo" period.

The Palace Park was completed from 1870 to 1880 from designs by Carl von Effner. Surrounding the palace are imitation baroque gardens and terraces and cascades in the Italian Renaissance style. The adjoining landscape garden continues into the mountain forest of the Ammergau Mountains. Ludwig II introduced architectural features into the park based on the world of the Orient, such as the Moorish Kiosk and the Moroccan House, and on scenes from Wagner's music dramas such as the Venus Grotto, Hunding's Hut and the Hermitage of Gurnemanz. The linden tree, from which the palace takes its name, is now 300 years old.

Today maintained by the Bavarian Administration of State-Owned Palaces, Gardens and Lakes, Herrenchiemsee is accessible to the public and a major tourist attraction. The visit of the palace is only possible with a guided tour.