What you'll hear
A two-hour walk through the Munich of King Ludwig the First: from Ludwigstraße with its library, university and Victory Gate, past the Pinakotheken to the Greek forum of Königsplatz and Lenbach's villa. We learn how the Bavarian philhellene king built his “Athens on the Isar”, why his architects were rivals, how his son became King of Greece and how the affair with Lola Montez ended. For anyone who loves architecture, museums and stories with character; free time in the museum quarter at the end.
On the way
Ludwigstraße and the State Library
We are standing on Ludwigstraße, in front of the long brick façade of the Bavarian State Library – this is where the royal axis begins, the avenue Ludwig the First drew northwards from the old town. We will keep walking north on this side of the street, and in a couple of minutes the two towers of the Ludwigskirche will…
Ludwigskirche
We are at the Church of Saint Louis, the royal and university church on Ludwigstraße. From here we continue north, and in two or three minutes the street will open into a square with two fountains in front of the university. Before us stands the parish and university church of Saint Louis, which Munich people simply call the Ludwigskirche. It…
The University and Geschwister-Scholl-Platz
We are on the university square, where Ludwigstraße opens up like a Roman forum between the university's main building and the building opposite. Ahead, at the end of the street, we can already see the Siegestor – we walk straight towards it, only a few minutes. In front of us is the main building of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität. Gärtner built it…
Siegestor – the Victory Gate
We are at the Siegestor, the Victory Gate with which the king closed his street to the north; beyond it Schwabing begins. Now comes our longest walk, about fifteen minutes: we head west along Akademiestraße past the Academy of Fine Arts, then left into Türkenstraße and right into Theresienstraße to the Alte Pinakothek – and on the way we will…
Alte Pinakothek
We are in the green park in front of the Alte Pinakothek, the picture gallery Ludwig built for his collection of Old Masters. The next stop is very close: we cross Theresienstraße to its southern side, to the light-coloured building of the Pinakothek der Moderne. Before us is the Alte Pinakothek, a work of Leo von Klenze. The foundation stone…
Pinakothek der Moderne
We are at the Pinakothek der Moderne – from the Old Masters we have stepped across the street straight into the twenty-first century. Next we walk about ten minutes: west along Gabelsbergerstraße as far as Arcisstraße, then left to Königsplatz. Let's take a look at the Pinakothek der Moderne. It was built by the architect Stephan Braunfels and opened in…
Königsplatz and the Glyptothek
We are on Königsplatz, Ludwig's Greek forum, in front of the portico of the Glyptothek. Let's say it straight away: in the nineteen thirties the square was paved with granite slabs as a parade ground, and only in nineteen eighty-eight did it get its lawns back – that era is the subject of a separate tour. From here we cross…
Propyläen
We are at the Propyläen, which close Königsplatz to the west – Ludwig's last great gift to his Greek dream. Beyond the gate, on the right, on Luisenstraße, we can see a yellow villa with a garden: that is the Lenbachhaus, literally a minute away. Before us stand the Propyläen, a ceremonial gateway modelled on the entrance to the Acropolis…
Lenbachhaus
We are at the Lenbachhaus, an artist's villa that became one of Munich's best-loved museums. The last walk takes about twelve minutes: north along Luisenstraße to Theresienstraße, then east along it, past the Pinakotheken, to the colourful façade of the Museum Brandhorst. Next to the Propyläen stands an ochre-yellow villa with a garden, as if moved here from Tuscany. This…
Free walk
Our route is over, and now the Kunstareal and the Maxvorstadt belong to us alone. It is impossible to get lost here: the streets form a regular grid, and the Pinakotheken, Königsplatz and Ludwigstraße are always just a few minutes away. Let's pop into a museum, have a coffee on Türkenstraße or Amalienstraße, browse the second-hand bookshops – and in…
