Germany Guide
Munich
The Residenz
Address: Max-Joseph-Platz
Opening time: Daily: April to mid-Oct 9am–6pm; mid-Oct to March 9am–5pm; last admittance one hour before closing
Price: €6, or €9 ticket with Schatzkammer, free English audio guide
Website: www.residenz-muenchen.de
The Residenz, the enormous royal palace complex of Bavaria's ruling Wittelsbach dynasty who resided here until 1918, has its origins in a small fourteenth-century castle, the Neuveste, of which nothing remains. Over the centuries it was transformed into a considerable palace complex by the Wittelsbachs, first as dukes, then from 1623 as electors and finally from 1806 as kings of Bavaria. What survives today is the result of several phases of construction and of post-1945 reconstruction after extensive damage during World War II. The oldest surviving Renaissance part dates from the reign of Albrecht V (1550–79) and was the work of Jacopo Strada and Simon Zwitzel, elaborated and extended from 1581 onwards by the Dutch architect Friedrich Sustris. Baroque and Rococo extensions followed, notably in the eighteenth century under court architect François Cuvilliés. A final major round of construction took place under Leo von Klenze during the reign of King Ludwig I; the additions made by Ludwig II – which included a rooftop winter garden complete with a royal barge on an indoor lake – have not survived.
Much of the interior of the palace is open to the public as the Residenzmuseum. The most spectacular room you see is also the oldest, the Antiquarium, originally built to house Duke Albrecht's collection of antiquities but remodelled under his successors, Wilhelm V and Maximilian I, as a banqueting hall. The results are breathtaking: the 66-metre-long vaulted hall is claimed to be the largest and most lavish Renaissance interior north of the Alps, richly decorated with frescoes, with allegories of fame and virtue by court painter Peter Candid covering the ceiling. The Ahnengalerie incorporates more than a hundred portraits of members of the Wittelsbach family. François Cuvilliés' inspired hand is evident in the Reiche Zimmer, or ornate rooms, in which everything from the gilded rocailles on the stucco walls and ceilings to the furniture received the master's attention.
The collection on display in the Schatzkammer (Treasury; same hours; €6, or €9 combined ticket) was initiated by Albrecht V and is one of the largest royal treasure-houses in Europe.