King Ludwig's Castle Linderhof Building began at Linderhof in 1874, and due to Ludwig pushing his workers harder and harder, was completed only four years later in 1878. The original wooden hunting lodge (really a chalet) was moved to another spot within the park. Ludwig desired the interior to be built in the style of Louis XV, and once again, as with Neushwanstein, the stage designer Christian Jank, as well as the Director of the Munich Court Theatre, Franz Seitz, supplied many designs. The Royal Architect, Georg Dollmann was responsible for the overall building. The interior is a mixture of Alpine Rococo and Louis XV Rococo. It is the only one of Ludwig's Castles that has an air of domesticity about it. It looks and feels like it is a house where one could really live. For this reason many visitors name Linderhof as their favourite Ludwig Castle.Perhaps the jewel in Linderhof's crown is the gardens. They were laid out at the same time as the castle was being built, and these were completed around 1880. One of the highlights of the gardens is the large fountain at the front of the Castle. When the jet of water from this fountain shoots into the air, it is a marvellous sight. Another major feature of the park at Linderhof was the buildings scattered throughout the vast park, many of which were devoted to Wagner's operas. Unfortunately, there are now only two remaining, as the rest fell down earlier this century due to being poorly built.
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