Neuschwanstein Castle, Once the Site of Monuments Men Operations, Designated UNESCO World Heritage Site

The royal palaces of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, including the picturesque Neuschwanstein, have been granted UNESCO World Heritage status this month. World Heritage sites are recognized for their “outstanding universal value” as locations of cultural and natural heritage of profound importance to humanity. Each nomination undergoes rigorous evaluation before being inscribed on the list—and these royal sites are no exception, having been on the German nomination list for a decade. Not only an architectural icon and symbol of romantic fantasy, Neuschwanstein Castle also played a pivotal role during World War II as a Nazi repository for looted art, later safeguarded by the Monuments Men.

“The royal castles are now the only testimony to a phenomenon that was widespread in the 19th century: the artistic and theatrical realization of ‘imaginary journeys’ to distant places and past times. Scarcely anywhere else was this phenomenon so elaborately realized; nowhere else are the varied presentations so self-contained in their entirety and so detailed as they are in the castles of Ludwig II…. In the royal castles of Ludwig II, German and European cultural history of the nineteenth century is manifested in a unique form.” -Statement of Outstanding Universal Value (OUV)  

Neuschwanstein Castle. Thomas Carr Howe papers, 1932-1984. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

Located in the municipality of Schwangau in southern Bavaria, Neuschwanstein was built during the reign of Ludwig II, who was known as the Fairytale King. Inspired by the operas of Richard Wagner, King Ludwig II began construction of the castle with preparatory work in the summer of 1868. It continued throughout his life, which ended tragically under mysterious circumstances in 1886. As the king gradually withdrew from public life, he devoted more time and finances to personal projects, including the castle, where he spent several years residing on the upper floors. Due to his untimely demise and personal debt, his ambitious plans for the structure were never fully realized, and it was opened to the public shortly after his death. 

This architectural marvel of romantic ideals and medieval lore was exploited by the Nazis during World War II as a repository and administrative center for their systematic plundering of Europe’s cultural heritage, marking a dark chapter in the castle’s history. 

The Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) was a special NSDAP operational unit under the direction of Alfred Rosenberg, the Nazi Party’s leading racial theorist. Its original function was to collect material from occupied countries for racial and cultural studies, but it soon became one of the main Nazi looting agencies in German-occupied territories during World War II. It began its operations in occupied France in the summer of 1940, soon after the invasion. As the confiscated works from private collections began to accumulate in Paris, the ERR sought to transport these cultural treasures to Reich territory, where they could be gathered in a centralized repository for further distribution throughout the Reich. With its secluded location and ample space, Neuschwanstein became the ERR’s main repository in Germany and an administrative center. The first shipments arrived in 1941, and this operation continued throughout most of the war, as the castle housed many works confiscated in France from the time of the invasion through 1943. However, as the Allied forces advanced into Reich territory and bombings intensified, Neuschwanstein was deemed unsafe and many of the most important works stored there were relocated to the salt mines in Altaussee in the fall of 1944, where they were recovered by the Allies at war’s end. 

Monuments Man Captain Adams inspects a statue inside one of the rooms used for storage. Thomas Carr Howe papers, 1932-1984. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

First Lieutenant James J. Rorimer, the Monuments officer attached to the Seventh US Army, arrived at Neuschwanstein on May 4, 1945, after learning of its significance from Rose Valland while he was stationed in Paris. He was accompanied by fellow Monuments Man Technician Fifth Grade John D. Skilton Jr. 

“Works of art everywhere, most of them marked with Paris ciphers. Confusion indicated that this repository was being emptied when the Nazis vanished a short time before the arrival of our troops. …In one room there was the photographic laboratory of the Einsatzstab Rosenberg. The ERR catalogues and individual records of the 203 private collections from France were in filing cabinets.” -James J. Rorimer Monuments Man (2022) 

The evacuation of the castle’s contents would be overseen by Monuments Man Captain Edward E. Adams Jr. beginning in late October 1945. His special evacuation team worked into early December, preparing the plundered works for their journey back to France. Adams detailed the experience in his article “Looted Art Treasures Go Back to France”: “The restitution totaled 6,000 items, which were packed in 1,200 crates. The three trains dispatched to Paris totaled a payload of thirty-five freight cars.” The shipments were coordinated by French restitution officer and Monuments Man Capitaine Hubert de Brye, who had worked tirelessly alongside Captain Adams at the castle. 

The Monuments Men and Women Foundation Collection, The National WWII Museum

National Archives (239-RC-14-5)

Private Collection (Margaret Farmer Planton)

Thérèse Bonney, © The Regents of the University of California, The Bancroft Library

In addition to cultural treasures, Neuschwanstein also held Nazi records of the theft. Among them were thirty-nine leather-bound photographic albums—known

today as the ERR Albums—that were created by the ERR staff for Hitler, so he could admire the extent of the agency’s confiscations.

Robert M. Edsel and former Archivist of the United States, David S. Ferriero, at the donation ceremony of ERR Albums 7 and 15.

They were recovered from the castle and sent to the Munich Central Collecting Point, where they were instrumental in the identification and restitution of additional artworks. They were also presented as evidence at the International Military Tribunal by Colonel Robert G. Storey, executive trial counsel for the American delegation. These albums are now among the holdings of the US National Archives and Records Administration, along with four addition albums discovered and donated by the Monuments Men and Women Foundation. 

Today, more than 150 years after its construction and some 80 years since World War II, Neuschwanstein Castle stands not only as a symbol of romantic imagination and royal ambition, but also as a silent witness to one of history’s darkest chapters. Drawing over one million visitors each year, it continues to enchant the public with its beauty and mystery. With UNESCO’s prestigious designation, the castle’s remarkable legacy will be preserved for future generations to explore and experience.