Ludwig II

The first character in my series on gay icons is the eccentric Ludwig II (10 March 1864 – 13 June 1886), King of Bavaria in the second half of the 19th century. He was the example par excellence of the spoilt gay rich kid. He had magnificent palaces built for himself, lavished his favorites with presents, travelled extensively, built special theatres and opera houses and arranged numerous private opera and theatre production for his sole private enjoyment. It is said that he complained that he could not enjoy the performances to their fullest when everyone stared at him and when he needed to keep his pose in public. Fully understood, who would want to see their king in tears about some swan knight!

Early history

As so many gays in this world it seems that he had an over-compensating mother and an absent father. His mother was the doting and on all accounts loving Marie of Prussia. The poor women fostered two children, the one mad and the other gay. Ludwig’s younger brother, Otto, lapsed into complete dementia as he grew older. There are letters from Ludwig to his mother expressing grave concerns about Otto’s mental health. Ludwig writes that Otto refused to take off his shoes for weeks on end and was scared of walking in the woods for getting blisters. The story is told of the desperate, by then rather aged queen mother spending a dark Christmas in one of the elaborate Bavarian castles with her obviously mad son on the one hand and her clearly recluse eccentric gay son on the other!

Sorry I am getting distracted, we were still at the over compensating mother and the absent father. The anecdote goes that Maximilian II, the father of Ludwig, was advised to from time to time go for walks in the woods with his son. Maximilian apparently retorted asking what would he possibly discussed with this son! Honestly that says it all: How any gays have not heard that phrase at one or other time in their lives?

First adoration


Picture: A young and dashing Ludwig II of Bavaria

In act one an older artistic paterfamilias enters the scene to exercises some undue influence over our gay icon. The paterfamilias in the case of Ludwig was the famous, and to some infamous, composer Richard Wagner.

There is no doubt in my mind that Wagner was an opportunist. He got thrown out of Germany for his leftist tendencies – it was the time of the first embryonic demands of the middle class for some limited democracy. He fled to Switzerland where he fell in love with his benefactor’s wife, Mathilde Wesendonck. He wrote illicit declarations of love and blatantly romantic songs for her under her husband’s nose. This finally got so unbearable to the benefactor that he threw him out of the garden cottage where he had been staying for free.

This was however, the very moment when Mr. Wagner’s luck turned. The young king Ludwig was heavily impressed with the fairytale, Germanic operas of Wagner. The handsome princes, fairytale back drops and damsels in distress stirred his artistic heart. One can imagine him, and from time to time one of his favorites, in joy and tears over the arrival or departure of a handsome knight (Lohingrin) or a muscled hero (Siegfried). So one of the first things that the young king Ludwig did, was to summon Wagner to court to work nearly exclusively for him. And this is where our gay hero gets a huge amount of sympathy: He saved one of the greatest opera composers of all times for us and gave him the necessary means to produce some of the greatest opera pieces ever written. One of my personal Wagnerian favorites, Tristan and Isolde, is completed shortly after Wagner arrived at the court in Bavaria. This would only be the start and Ludwig would support Wagner in finishing numerous other operas such as the celebrated Ring der Nibelungen triptych of operas. At the end of Wagner’s life Ludwig would come through with the required finances to complete a state of the art opera house just for Wagner in Bayreuth.

In true Wagnerian fashion the old master would, however, test the limits of his benefactor’s friendship. He, Wagner, got involved in one of the juiciest scandals of the Bavarian court of that time. He fell in love with the beautiful, 24 years younger, but unfortunately married Cosima van Bulow. She was the illegitimate daughter of the composer Liszt who tried all his means to stop her from pursuing her relationship with Wagner. Well, you can imagine the indignation at court! When Wagner tried to influence the king to change some of the members of his cabinet the glass was full! The king was put under huge pressure and Wagner was once again ordered to leave Germany.

Ludwig, however, was a true and loyal friend. He installed Wagner in a grand palace on the shore of Lake Lucern. He continued to support Wagner financially and after the storm died down even managed to install him in a very opulent mansion in Bayreuth close to his very own opera house! So much for exile and hardship!

It seems clear that there were never any sexual relationship between Wagner and Ludwig. Wagner was clearly much too busy with his Cosima to have any sexual feelings for Ludwig. Ludwig probably saw in Wagner a supreme artist, but supposedly also a understanding father figure. Finally he had found someone that could go the extra mile with him in his fantastic ideas. Here was the man that shared the same dreams as he had – a man that had the same ideals as he had. Here was a man that had no need for diplomatic conniving and strategic wars, but found art the greatest good like him.

First love

Ludwig’s first love seemed to have been the athletic, blond, aristocratic Paul of Turn and Taxis. Paul came from one of the richest aristocratic families of Germany. He met Ludwig at court and it was love at first site. Ludwig’s nickname for Paul was his faithful Frederich.


Picture: Paul von Turn und Taxis, 24 Jan 1964

This is Ludwig to Paul: “Let me assure you that I shall always foster with the same sincerity the feelings of gratefulness and faithful love which I bear for you in my heart. Remember with love, your faithful Ludwig”

And this is Paul to Ludwig: “Dear and beloved Ludwig! I have just finishing my diary with the thought of the beautiful hours which we spent together that evening a week ago which made me the happiest man on earth… Oh, Ludwig, Ludwig, I am devoted to you! I couldn’t stand the people around me; I sat still and, in my thought I was with you...How my heart beat when, as I passed the Residenz, I saw a light in your window."

After spending some time together in the Bavarian Alps, Paul was promoted to be the private aide-de-camp of Ludwig. I suppose that was as close to being alone with a man that Ludwig could get and one can only imagine what those “beautiful hours which we spent together a week ago” could mean.

Paul shared Ludwig’s passion for music and moreover Wagner. Paul had a beautiful voice and once sang some arias of Lohingrin in an elaborate private performance for Ludwig. There is an engraving showing Paul as a magnificent knight in shining amour, riding in on his swan boat. These images of pure pleasure and love must have stayed with Ludwig all his life and one can imagine him on a lonely night in his beautiful Neuschwanstein (meaning New Swan Stone) castle thinking back on those beautiful memories. When Wagner was finally banned from court, Paul played a critical role in convincing Ludwig to stay on and not abdicate and act as a discreet interlocutor.

Soon, however, also the relationship between Paul and Ludwig soured. Some commentators maintain that rumors reached Ludwig that he was two timing him with some women, or rather one specific woman. I am sure jealous tongues attempted to discredit Paul. Also Ludwig must have been torn in two with his inner conflicts. One can imagine “that the slightest tremor of reality threatened to send the relationship plummeting to oblivion” as one commentator writes. Paul could easily falter making a wrong choice, saying the wrong word, displaying too much familiarity on one occasion and not enough affection on another. Trivial in themselves, such incidents preyed upon Ludwig’s mind until they became unbearable. Once and for all, he cut Paul out of his life. When he learned of his fall from grace, he sent some agonized letters to the King, but there was to be no response from Ludwig:

“My own beloved Ludwig! What in the name of all the saints has your Friedrich done to you? What did he say that no hand, no good night, no “Auf Wiedersehen” favored him? How I feel I cannot say, my trembling hand may show you my inner disquiet. I did not intend to hurt you. Forgive me; be good again with me, I fear the worst - I cannot stand this. May my notes climb to your reconciliation. Amen! Forgive your unhappy Friedrich”.

The rest of Paul’s life is a true tragedy. He started to drink heavily and one drunken night ended up in bed with an operetta star, Elise Kreuzer. She maintained that he had made her pregnant, that while he was apparently completely inebriated. He deserted the Bavarian military and was forced to marry Elise by his family that proceeded to strip him of all his titles and money by the family. He tried to take up acting but was hissed of the stage. As if all of this was not bad enough, he contracted tuberculosis and Elise eloped with a Prussian officer. He died shortly afterwards in Cannes, "remembering the only true love of his life" as he wrote shortly before his death. He never saw Ludwig again, in spite of numerous attempts to reconcile them by his step family and the Wagners. Sadder than that you don’t often get!

Marriage crisis

As with most gays, at some point in time Ludwig would be confronted with the frightening prospect of marriage. As is so often the case, the central tragic figure in this episode was a very lovely, but - oh so - embarrassed lady. The lady in case was the rather dashing Princess Sophie of Bavaria, the cousin of Ludwig. Her sister was the famous Empress Elizabeth of Austria that became engraved in popular culture as “Sissy”. In January 1867 Ludwig was betrothed to Sophie and a date was set in August for the wedding.

They three of them, Sissy, Sophie and Ludwig, were childhood friends. Actually one could describe Sissy and Sophie as two very good examples of early “fag hags”. They adore Ludwig and his mad fantasies. Sissy called Ludwig her “eagle” and Sissy was his “dove”. Later after the horrible ordeal was over Ludwig would write to Sophie, calling her "My beloved Elsa! Your cruel father has torn us apart. Eternally yours, Heinrich" (the names Elsa and Heinrich came from characters from Wagner operas).

Well, Ludwig tried to postpone the wedding date twice and finally called it off. Sophie, Sissy and the whole family was totally disgusted and disgraced. The whole ordeal must have contributed in no small part to the increasingly recluse behavior of Ludwig.

Some commentators maintained that Sophie was already having an affair shortly after the engagement was announced. I can imagine that she must have realized that it was not going to be a hot marriage in any way or mean! And perhaps even more intriguing some commentators think that Ludwig fell head of over heals in love around the time of the engagement with a second Richard.

The second Richard

Three months before the planned wedding to Princess Sophie, Ludwig met Richard Hornig, a groom at the stables at Berg castle. A blond, blue-eyed Prussian, five years older than the King, he was to become an important figure in Ludwig’s life. Richard Hornig was a superb horseman and mutual love of horses can be a strong bond. Hornig saw the King constantly and intimately, and their friendship seems to have been sincere and lasting. He saw to the comfort and well-being of his Sovereign. He soon occupied the office of Crown Esquerry and Master of the Horse. He controlled all horse transport, coaches and carriages, stabling, purchase, breeding and training of the Royal horses, which numbered around 500. The King and Hornig often visited the remote castles, chalets and mountain huts, mostly in a four-horse carriage and sometimes in an illuminated sleigh in the moonlight. Hornig soon acted as go-between the King and his ministers which caused much criticism. The King and Hornig also set out on a journey through Germany and to France, with the King travelling incognito as Count von Berg. Some commentators have little doubt that the appearance of Richard Hornig in May led to the break with Sophie. Perhaps it convinced Ludwig that for him a normal love for any woman was not possible.

German unification

Ludwig lived in troubled times. He was caught between three European empires. There was the waning Austrian-Hungarian Empire to his south and the French Empire to the west. The new kid on the black was the ambitious Prussian Empire to the north with the brilliant strategist and diplomat, Otto von Bismarck. In two sets of separate wars, Bismarck managed to unite the German nations under the leadership of the Prussian king. First he provoked the Austrian, with which side Bavaria sided, to a war and defeated them in a devastating blitzkrieg. Then he provoked the French and, this time with the Bavarian on his side, routed the French. As the German troops approach Paris it quickly became clear that the true intention was to install the Prussian king as Kaiser of the united German people.

Reluctantly, Ludwig agreed to the deal. As a sign of his discontent, he sent his brother Otto to sign the peace treaty in Versailles. One can imagine that with a new Kaiser in place, Ludwig gradually must have felt somehow relieved to leave the ugly politic up to Berlin and retire in his own world of castles, music and Louis XIV fantasies.

In his private life there became increasingly marked the signs of moral and mental weakness which gradually gained the mastery over his once pure and noble nature. A prominent feature was his blind craving for solitude. He cut himself off from society, and avoided all intercourse with his family, even with his devotedly affectionate mother. With his ministers he came to communicate in writing only. At the end he was surrounded only by inferior favorites and servants. His life was now spent almost entirely in his castles far from the capital, which irked him more and more, or on short and hasty journeys, in which he always travelled incognito. Even the theatre he could now only enjoy alone. He arranged private performances in his castles or in Munich at fabulous cost, and appointed an official poet to his household. Later his avoidance of society developed into a dread of it, accompanied by a fear of assassination and delusions that he was being followed.

The grand finale

The last part of Ludwig’s story is somewhere between a mental asylum and a murder mystery. Through the ages, eccentricity has regularly been incorrectly misconstrued as madness. Ludwig was no exception. His grand projects not only created work in the Bavarian countryside, it slowly but surely depleted his own coffers and that of the Bavarian state. And most frightening of all his plans seemed to have no end: Three huge fairytale castle building projects would normally satisfy the average despot, but not Ludwig. He had at least 2 further huge building projects on the drawing board.

His ministers connived with the state physician and developed a plausible story about his insanity and megalomania. Reluctantly they convinced Berlin to go along with their plans and Ludwig was basically incarcerated in one of his palaces. One stormy might he went for a walk with one of his close aides and rocked up the next morning floating in the waters of the adjacent lake. There are numerous theses about whether he was finally killed by the Bavarian conspirators or whether he tried to escape and drowned. Honestly, the true reason for his death looks of lesser importance, to the tragic finale of a rather deranged and deprived man!

Legacy

So where does that leave us today, 124 years, after his death? The facts are that his castles are a major tourist destination that probably earned their costs back fully. He played no small role in securing the famous operas of Wagner for prosperity. The fans of Wagner need to light a candle to him every year they visit the exclusive Wagner Festspiele in the beautiful opera house financed by Ludwig.



But to me Ludwig also has a private much more intimate legacy. He became a symbol of peace in a sea of turbulence. He believed that there were much better things to do than fight wars and kill innocent disenfranchised people. In his deranged way he found a much more exiting realty than the macho culture of his time. In true gay fashion, he showed the world an artistic alternative that is much more enduring than that of the militaristic culture of his age. Where can you find Bismarck today? Was the ultimate military legacy of Bismarck not the devastating First World War? Is the legacy of Bismarck the bombed and burnt down cities of Germany as opposed to the magical castles of Ludwig? Is the legacy of our mad hatter gay icon, Ludwig, not so much more appealing if one looks at it in this way?!