The 17th century seems to have been a moment for European rulers to turn their backs on inner city palaces and move to the suburbs. Think Versailles, the Schönbrunn in Vienna, and more, all originally away from the walled old cities of their time, and often originally hunting lodges or vacation spots.
The same idea happened to the rulers of Bavaria, who hired the Italian architect Agostino Barelli to build a palace to celebrate the birth of their son and heir in 1664.
A bit over 30 years later, the son started a nearly 200-year process of adding wings at each end, extending the wings, landscaping the grounds and more. Over the years, the styles changed from Baroque to Rococo and neo-classical, and bits of each can be seen.
Here’s how it looked around 1760, in a painting by Bernardo Bellotto.
With the end of German royalty in 1918, the palace became state property, and has had various uses. Today, one wing houses an amazing museum of royal carriages and sleds, while another is home to the Museum of Man and Nature. Other areas are used for concerts, meeting spaces and a display of Nymphenburg Porcelain. The porcelain factory was founded by the royal family and was located on the grounds.
One of the palace swans.
