Neuschwanstein was built from 1868 by King Ludwig II of Bavaria and is probably the best known castle in the world. It is a mixture of styles and the initial blueprint was penned by a theatre designer rather than an architect.
The castle was built 2000m above the valley floor and its centre piece became the lavish Sängersaal (Minstrel’s Hall) where Ludwig could indulge in his obsession with Wagner and medieval knights. Rather madly, for all the money spent on it, when it was finished in 1886 the first sky scrapers in America were being built.