MUNICH RESIDENCE

This gigantic Residenz was the heart of power and home to Bavaria's rulers from the ^16th century until 1918, which marked the end of the war, but also the end of the reign and hegemony of the all-powerful Wittelsbachs. Originally, it was much smaller than it is today, but the dynasty's rulers worked to make it ever larger and more sumptuous. This explains the palace's many different styles: Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo and Neoclassical. It's a veritable architectural palimpsest. Each sovereign has left his mark. King Ludwig ^I entrusted the design of the Königsbau (King's Dwelling) and the Festsaalbau (Festival Hall) to his resident architect, Leo von Klenze, who drew his inspiration from the architecture of the Pitti Palace in Florence, Italy. Here too, the Second World War took its toll and reconstruction was extremely costly. Today, the Residenz Museum is one of the city's main attractions, and a visit to its various rooms in a row plunges us into the history of Bavaria and the House of Wittelsbach. The restoration and reconstruction of the Residenz continues to this day. Most recently, the Gelbe Treppe (a staircase in yellow marble) was rebuilt according to the original plans and opened to the public in June 2021.

Ahnengalerie and Porzellankabinett. On becoming Elector in 1726, Charles-Albert (Karl Albrecht in German) immediately commissioned his court architect, Joseph Effner, who had trained in France, to design an ancestors' gallery. More than 100 portraits of members of the Wittelsbach family follow one another in the gallery's gilded woodwork. The aim was to attract attention and show the various connections of the dynasty. The adjacent room, richly decorated, has housed a collection of porcelain since the early ^20th century.

Antiquarium. This is the oldest room in the residence and undoubtedly the most beautiful in the palace. Duke Albert V (Albrecht V) had it built between 1568 and 1571 to house his collection of antique sculptures, hence the name Antiquarium. After his death, this superb Renaissance hall was transformed into a banqueting hall.

Reiche Zimmer. These aptly named "rich rooms" were designed in rococo style by François Cuvilliers (who also built the theater that bears his name). They were commissioned by Elector Charles-Albert. The parade room shows his interest in French-style castles, whose ceremonial style he did not follow.

Königsbau. Immediately after taking power in 1825, King Ludwig ^I undertook a large-scale expansion of the residence. In 1826, architect Leo von Klenze began work on a new residential palace in the southern part of the Residence complex. Louis' love of Italy and the Renaissance determined the style of the extension, particularly the façade on Max-Joseph-Platz, which Klenze designed using elements from the Palazzo Pitti and Palazzo Rucellai in Florence. The new building was completed in 1835. The symmetrically arranged apartments of Queen Theresa and King Ludwig ^I, with their respective throne rooms, are impressive.

Schatzkammer The Munich residence's world-renowned collection of jewelry and silverware, enamel, crystal and ivory, now numbering over 1,200 individual pieces, is the result of the Bavarian sovereigns' centuries-old passion for collecting. This collection of Duke Albrecht V, the first great patron and art collector of the House of Wittelsbach, was expanded by his son, Duke Wilhelm V, and his grandson, Elector Maximilian ^I. Electors Maximilian-Emmanuel, Karl Albrecht and Maximilian III Joseph continued to expand the collection. Of particular interest is the remarkable collection of liturgical objects and reliquaries acquired by Wilhelm V and Maximilian ^I. The individual works of art in this collection were transferred to the Treasury in 1958. The treasury was reopened in its present form on June 21, 1958, in ten rooms on the first floor of the Königsbau.

Bronzesäle With over forty bronze sculptures from the late ^16th and early ^17th centuries, the Residenzmuseum presents one of the richest collections of European bronze art from the Mannerist and early Baroque periods. Today, the bronze gods and heroes that once adorned the gardens, fountains and facades of the residence have been replaced by in situ copies. Since 2015, the precious originals have been on display in the first Baroque rooms on the first floor to the north-west of the residence's imperial courtyard. In just a few years, Florence-trained sculptors Hubert Gerhard and Carlo di Cesare del Palagio brought bronze sculpture to a high level at the court of Duke William V, continued by local artists such as Hans Krumpper and Georg Petel under Maximilian I^. The bronzes in the Residenz Museum, such as the demi-god Perseus, the figures in the Wittelsbach Fountain or the Tellus Bavarica, impressively illustrated the political ambitions of the Wittelsbach family during the Counter-Reformation and on the eve of the Thirty Years' War. They recall one of the most formative eras in Bavarian history.