Mad king of the
castle
This famous Neuschwanstein castle was considered a waste of time and
money when the king died. This was because he had been diagnosed as mentally
ill due to his elaborate decoration of the inside of the castle. So, for a
while after his death many people were not keen to take on the castle.
Fortunately for us, someone saw the value of this glorious home and now we are
lucky to get to visit this very popular tourist attraction.
I find it
interesting that because of the way that King Ludwig II had decorated the place they decided he was
mentally unhealthy. He was a person that didn’t like to be around people and
didn’t like to be looked at. He built this castle as a haven with grand rooms
that were supposed to house events. He decorated the inside with murals and a
lot of elaborate woodcarvings. He slept in a single bed that had a canopy of
stars. Although to us these extravagant carvings and luxurious decorations may
not make us flinch because we assume as a king he would have wanted the best
for his palace and if that sometimes having cash and power doesn’t necessarily
mean that it is automatic that good taste is a given. But the most surprising
space in that palace of all of the places is a room hidden behind a secret door.
This room is not adorned by decadent wood carvings or even perfectly painted
murals, this room is meant to look like a cave, it is covered from floor to ceiling
with cave… it looked like rock. The room was meant to depict a cave in one of the
king’s favorite myths.
It’s interesting to
know that this king had some psychological issues which he chose to deal with
through home furnishings and decoration. I’m glad we are breaking down the
stigmas associated with mental illness today because who knows how many
wonderful things we may miss out on if we jump to conclusions about the value
of something based on the health of its creator.
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