Probing Munich’s Past, Part II

One thing I love about places with medieval history are physical remnants of the past. In many German cities, those remnants include walls and/or gates.

Map of medieval Munich with its fortifications.

Munich is no exception. Three of the four large towers from the city’s old fortifications stand, allowing a real-world glimpse into the size of the historic city center and the impressive skill used to protect it.

Munich’s first wall was built sometime in the 1100s. The remaining towers are remnants of the “new” city wall built from the late 1200s to the mid-1300s.

Its location and affluence would have made Munich a tempting target, but in the face of a siege by a Swedish army during the Thirty Years’ War, the residents opened the gates and let the invaders in rather than risk destruction of their beloved town.

Today, Münchner are no less proud. In fact, the city has apparently had centuries of a popularity “problem.” The wall surrounding Munich was torn down way back in 1791 to accommodate the growing population!

With around 1.5 million residents, Munich is Germany’s third-largest city. But its compact core gives it a town-like feel that probably helps feed its devotion to tradition.

Sendlinger Tor is believed to be the city's oldest, built in 1318 to boost trade between Bavaria and Italy.
(See? And you thought my post last week was only about random sightseeing... ;)

Isartor was built in 1337, and is the only Munich gate that still has its middle main tower.
The frescos you see above the archways were created in 1835.

Karlstor was named after elector Karl Theodor, who was responsible for the removal of the city wall
in the face of Munich's steady expansion.

Travels by Train: Venice

Among the many appealing aspects of Munich is its proximity to other great German cities and European countries. Before we even moved here, I vowed to take full advantage of this, given how easy and affordable it is to travel by train (and the fact that we had planned to take regular trips in Hamburg and only did so near the end of our stay there).

Last year, I met up with a friend and former colleague for a day in the Netherlands. 

This year, when she said she'd be attending an event in Venice, I heartily agreed to meet her there for a few days. 

I've been to Rome, Cinque Terre, and Rimini, but Venice has been lingering on my bucket list for a while.

Maybe it's all that water, but Venice was instantly soothing. For the first time, I was perfectly content to wander and get lost in a strange city. 

I hit the main tourist spots, but was also inspired by the history and stories provided by my city walking tour guide.

St. Mark's Basilica

Interior of the Doge's Palace. The doges were nobility that ruled the Republic of Venice for a millennium.

View out over the city from the Campanile, which originally served as the city's watchtower/lighthouse.

With views like this, maybe there's hope for me to take in all of this European history after all!

One of the jokes about Munich is that it's the "northernmost city in Italy," and it's true that you'll hear Ciao more frequently than Tschüβ.

Traveling through the Alps into Austria and Italy was more a matter of changing landscapes than lands. Signs were in German and Italian, and one man near me on the train kept switching between German and Italian in his phone conversation with his daughter. 

Each of my adventures peaks my interest in learning more about the connections and converging histories of the places around me, so I'm going to take my time and enjoy connecting the dots!

Probing Munich’s Past, Part I

History is not my strong suit. I can learn speeches, song lyrics, and lines from movies, but lists of dates and treaties and names? Nope.

Part of the problem is that I need more personal interaction with all that data—some way to feel connected to it. 

If the History Channel had been around when I was growing up, that would have helped. Transforming facts into stories gives them staying power with me.

European history, in particular, is tough. It covers millennia of nobility and monarchs (with their repeating names!), not to mention the alliances, wars, and strategic marriages. 

Then there are the shifting national borders, and countries that have been passed back and forth like a real-life game of Risk.

When I'm sightseeing, my mind starts to wander with these myriad details.

In Hamburg, the story was a bit more straightforward. Important port and center of commerce, independent status, city history shaped by water, wealth, and worldwide trade.

At first glance, Munich looked to be more complicated because of its royal connections and accompanying intrigue. Since our river cruise last year and my explorations to date, however, I’ve been seeing some of the same names and events pop up.

So, I thought I should take a step back for a big-picture view of Bavaria’s past, and see if I find remnants of it in Munich today. But that doesn’t mean this is going to be a distillation of how the House of Wittelsbach ruled Bavaria as dukes, prince-electors, and kings. * 

This recent foray was mostly an excuse for one of my favorite sightseeing pastimes…palaces! Luckily, the Wittelsbach clan had two in Munich: the Residenz in what is now the city center, and a summer home, the Nymphenburger Schloss, approximately 7 km to the northwest.

Residenz

The residence evolved from a castle that was first built in 1385, into an impressive palace complex that was added to and remodeled by generations of Wittelsbach rulers. It was heavily damaged in WWII, but many of the furnishings survived, and it has been carefully reconstructed. 

Of all the palaces I've visited, this one offered (by far) the largest number of rooms to walk through. It's the largest city palace in Germany, and took me nearly three hours to see, even though I skipped much of the audio guide detail.

View of the front entrance to the Munich Residenz. As facades go it's not terribly impressive, but it's a different story inside.

This picture doesn't do justice to the beauty of the Antiquarium and its paintings.
The niches in the walls display a collection of antique statues.

This is a portrait gallery of the Wittelsbach rulers. Halfway down the corridor
is a floor-to-ceiling painted graphic of their family tree.

Music room

King's bedroom

King's audience chamber

The Treasury is contained in the palace (separate tour), and includes the jewels, crowns, swords,
stone and gem carvings, and exotic decor collected by the Wittelsbach family.

Nymphenburg

Completed in the late 1600s, the Nymphenburg palace and grounds were expanded to their current dimensions in the mid-1700s. The palace complex also includes a porcelain museum and carriage museum (separate tours). 

As lovely as the palace is, the grounds were the highlight for me, with approximately 445 acres of landscaped lawns, forest groves, waterways, and four park "pavilions" (separate tours) which are the equivalent of small estate homes.

View of the main wing and entrance of the Nymphenburg palace.

A view of the palace's Great Hall.

The Marstallmuseum is housed in the old stables and
includes carriages, sleighs, and elaborate riding harnesses.

This figure in the Porcelain Museum
summed up the feel of my palace visits.

View from the back of the palace to the start of the park-like grounds.

The grotto in the Magdalenklause pavilion. The building was deliberately built to look like an ancient ruin.

The entry room of the Pagodenburg pavilion. The decor on both levels is Asian-themed.

A hallway in the Amalienburg pavilion. This pavilion was considered a "hunting lodge."

The swimming pool in the Badenburg pavilion. 

Piecing It Together

What great insights did I gain from my visits? Well, I've heard several people say that folks in Munich can be snooty (even some Munich natives have said this). I haven't encountered this yet, but having visited these palaces, I can see where it may have started. 😉

In all seriousness, Munich has been dubbed the land of "Laptops and Lederhosen." There is a fervent commitment to tradition and a paradoxical embrace of technology. 

In a lot of ways, the energy in Munich reminds me of what I felt when we first moved to Silicon Valley in fall 2000. You had the feeling that anything could happen, and anyone could be a part of making it happen. 

Finding the balance between the past and the present seems to be Munich's strength; it's what gives this city Old World charm and New World currency. And in the land of fairy tales and castles, that kind of magic certainly makes sense.