History of Munich

Munich has a population of over one million and ranks as the third largest city in Germany, behind Berlin and Hamburg. It is located on the Isar River and is the capital of the federal state of Bundesland Bavaria. The original settlement, called Munichen, was founded in 1158 by the Duke of Saxony (Henry the Lion). 

About 50 years later, its status was elevated to that of a city and fortifications were added. The Duke of Saxony was replaced, in 1180, by Otto of Wittelsbach, who became the Duke of Bavaria. In 1255, the dukedom of Bavaria was divided into two parts, with Munich becoming the seat of Upper Bavaria. The Wittelsbach dynasty continued to rule Bavaria until 1918.

The Habsburgs

The city was completely destroyed by fire in 1327, and then later rebuilt by Louis IV, who was at that time the ruling Holy Roman Emperor. Two centuries later, as a result of the Thirty Years’ War, the city came under the control of Sweden’s Gustav II Adolph. Finally, in 1705, it was recaptured by the Habsburgs and brought under their rule. In 1759, the Bavarian Academy of Sciences, Munich’s first academic institution, was founded. 

By this time, the city was developing rapidly and was one of the European continent’s largest cities. It was made capital of the Bavarian monarchical state in 1806, meaning that the state's parliament, the Landtag, was seated in Munich along with the administration of the new archdiocese of Munich and Freising. In 1826, the city’s second educational institution, the Landshut University, was established.
Today, many of the city's finest buildings belong to this period, typified by the Maximilian style of architecture, named after King Maximilian I. Included are the Ruhmeshalle, the Königsplatz (built by architects von Klenze and von Gärtner) and Schwanthaler’s ‘Bavaria’ statue.

Hitlers power base

In the period shortly following the end of WWI, Munich found itself at the centre of unrest, which eventually saw the rise of National Socialism and Adolf Hitler. In 1923, Hitler and his many Munich supporters staged an attempt at overthrowing the government. This was called the Beer Hall Putsch, which failed at the time and led to Hitler’s arrest and a crippling of the Nazi party, at that time largely unknown outside the immediate area. 

By 1933 however, when the Nazi party took power in Germany, the city became a Nazi stronghold. It was considered so important to the Nazis that they called it the Capital of the Movement (Hauptstadt der Bewegung) and located the headquarters of the NSDAP here. You will see many of the so-called Führer buildings (Führerbauten) around the Königsplatz today.

Post-war reconstruction

Munich suffered severe damage from the bombing that occurred during WWII. American occupation of the city began on 1945, and was followed by a massive reconstruction programme, leading to the lovely and vibrant city enjoyed by visitors today.