One of the most famous palaces, which attracts crowds of visitors all year round, is Nymphenburg Palace with its idyllic palace gardens in the west of Munich. This former summer residence of the Bavarian electors was built by Elector Ferdinand Maria for his wife Henriette Adelaide on the occasion of the birth of their long-awaited heir to the throne, Max Emanuel. The first buildings were constructed between 1664 and 1674 according to the designs of architect Augustino Barelli. After that, the palace complex and the palace gardens were repeatedly expanded. The current Baroque palace complex and its extensive gardens date back to the son of Elector Ferdinand Maria, Elector Max Emanuel. Between 1704 and 1758, he had the central wing redesigned by Joseph Effner, Enrico Zucalli and Antonio Viscardi and added galleries and pavilions. The royal stables were built to the south of the park, and the orangery and monastery to the north. Under Elector Karl Albrecht, the palace complex was extended towards the town with a roundabout and semicircular cavalier houses. Since 1761, one of these cavalier houses has been home to the world-famous Nymphenburg Porcelain Manufactory. The centrepiece of this palace complex is undoubtedly the central pavilion from the Rococo period with its Stone Hall, which, in addition to gilded stucco decorations and numerous frescoes, also houses the main fresco ‘Nymphs Paying Homage to the Goddess Flora’. These nymphs are also the namesakes of Nymphenburg Palace. According to legend, the first count, Pierre of Savoy, received the ring of power for his estate from a nymph. Ludwig II, known as the Fairy Tale King, was also born in Nymphenburg Palace in 1845. His birth room can be visited, as can a Chinese lacquer cabinet with lacquer paintings, the legendary Blue Salon and the woodturning cabinet. Today, the former summer residence of the Wittelsbach family belongs to the Free State of Bavaria. However, the Wittelsbach family still has limited rights of residence, which are exercised by the respective head of the House of Wittelsbach. Nymphenburg Palace with its extensive landscape park is a tourist hotspot that locals also love to visit because of its paradisiacal flora and fauna, where they can enjoy the beauty of nature and the baroque palace complex.
