The Marienplatz is defined by the stone column of Saint Mary rising from its center, topped with a gilded statue of the Virgin Mary holding the Christ child. Since eleven fifty-eight, this square served as the primary marketplace for…
Altstadt Palaces and Plazas
This walk leads you through the grand civic and royal heart of Munich, connecting bustling historic plazas with the elegant courtyards and monuments of the Bavarian kings.
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1. Marienplatz
2. Frauenkirche
The Frauenkirche is defined by its two rounded copper onion domes, which rise above the Munich skyline and stand nearly three hundred feet tall. Duke Sigismund commissioned the brick cathedral in fourteen sixty-eight, tasking architect…
3. St. Michael München
The massive barrel vault ceiling inside Saint Michael covers the entire nave without a single supporting column. Duke Wilhelm the Fifth commissioned this Jesuit church in fifteen eighty-three to serve as a beacon for the…
4. Odeonsplatz
Odeonsplatz features an open, yellow loggia modeled directly after the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence. King Ludwig the First commissioned this square in the nineteenth century to give Munich a taste of Italian classicism. In November…
5. Munich Residence
The Munich Residence is a sprawling complex of ten courtyards and one hundred and thirty rooms, defined by the distinct copper domes crowning the roofline of the central wings. This site served as the primary palace and seat of government…
6. Max-Joseph-Platz
Max Joseph Platz forms a grand, open rectangle defined by the Residenz palace on one side and the National Theater on the other. King Maximilian the First Joseph commissioned this square in the early nineteenth century to create a stately…
7. Alter Hof
The Alter Hof features a sharp, pointed gable and a dry moat that separates it from the bustling streets of Munich. This complex served as the first residence for the Wittelsbach dukes in the thirteenth century. Ludwig the Bavarian made it…