Ludwig II.
The Final Days of the Fairy Tale King

starting June 2026

Ludwig II is arguably the most famous and colourful figure in Bavarian history. His reign produced castles and gardens, myths and legends, and ultimately came to an end in what is probably Bavaria’s most famous unsolved death. Indebted, lonely and deemed mentally ill, Ludwig died on 13 June 1886 together with the psychiatrist Dr Bernhard von Gudden in Lake Starnberg. This exhibition is dedicated to the final four days of the ‘Fairy Tale King’ – a drama in four acts. 

At the age of only eighteen, the art-loving crown prince ascended the Bavarian throne. However, shortly after his coronation, his generosity and extravagance became apparent, not least in the excessive construction of castles and palaces. With the major political changes following two wars and the loss of Bavarian independence in the wake of the founding of the German Empire in 1871, the unsociable king increasingly withdrew from politics and public life. 

As a monarch, he found himself caught between eras and worlds, torn between fantastical productions and illusions on the one hand and mundane political reality on the other. An enthusiastic promoter of technological progress, Ludwig implemented its possibilities in historicist buildings and lived out his dreams of flying. As an aesthete, he ruled in times of war, was religiously tolerant and yet raved about the Christian-influenced Middle Ages. He was torn between intimate longings and social norms. Politically, he acted in a manner that was backward-looking. Longing for absolute power and creative freedom, he modelled himself on the French ‘Sun King’, Louis XIV, without regard for the contemporary constitution and parliament. Increasingly irrational in his perception of reality, he sought solitude and distanced himself from people and the world. But how did this lead to the tragedy of his death? What biographical and political circumstances were at play? What is known about the final days of the ‘Fairy Tale King’ beyond the oral traditions that are still alive today? 

In four chapters, the exhibition presents the final days of the king’s life. For a better understanding, a prologue sheds light on Ludwig’s background and important developments in Bavaria. An epilogue at the end of the exhibition reports on what happened immediately after the king’s death. Each day is accompanied by a text summarising the events. The following subchapters provide more in-depth information. Audio recordings portray individuals and explain events and documents that were significant for the respective day. The audio recordings can be accessed via a QR code using your own smartphone or devices available for loan from the museum. The exhibition thus offers the opportunity to quickly gain an overview of the context and events or, alternatively, to delve deeply into the history. 

This exhibition is presented by the Friends Association of the Museum, with funding provided by the District of Starnberg, the District of Upper Bavaria and the Bavarian State Ministry for Sience and Arts.