Washington Journal., 1943-03-12
GLIMPSES OF SOME CONTEMPORARIES
Ludwig II Of Bavaria
Ludwig II Of Bavaria
By Edwin EMERSON

lHCN MGul W l. III IlulJDOANAJ OAC ANAA pr
sumptive, who broke the seal and read the
letter. 1t was in French, in the handwriting
of Ludwig. For a loan of 40 million francs
at 4 percent interest Ludwig pledged to the
House of Rothschild not only his royal
castles. but all the inheritance OF the House
Of Wittelsbach. This was serious.
Prince Luitpold called a Crown Council in
the presence of the whole Cabinet OF minis
tiers. They determined to send a commission
of four a~lienists to Linderhof to examine into
the Kings sanity.
A Mailman out of Hand
Meanwhile King Ludwig was awaiting
Hesselschwerdt's return with the money. lie
had told him to inform Baron Rothschild that
building of noble castles was his only JOY.
The money therefor must not be withheld.
Yet he got no word from Paris. Instead a
letter came from Hesselschwerdt saying he
had fallen i'll i'll Munich.
Presently Hoppe, a barber, while dres-
sing his royal masters hair, told HIM that
he had seen Hesselschwerdt walking the
streets Of Munich in perfect health. Ludwig
realized he was being hoodwinked.
He decided to take things in his W hands.
With a few Of his servants he had himself
driven to Neuschwanstein. There he wrote
a letter to the Comte de Paris, the head OF the
House Of Orleans, begging him for a large
loan. In return he promised to support the
pretensions Of that house to the royal throne
OF France and, in case OF another French
war with Prussia, to help France by having
Bavaria stand aside as a neutral. While
dispatching this letter by one of his grooms,
for him to carry it across the border to a
Swiss post office, he foolishly had a telegram
filed at Prien, wherein he informed the Comte
dc Paris that a letter was underway via
Switzerland. The text Of the telegram, after
passing through Munich, was shown to the
Minister of Communications, who showed 1t
to the Primeminister. Instant orders were
given to intercept suspicious mail from the
Chiemsee and to watch all travellers about to
enter Switzerland from Bavaria. The Kings
courier, riding in civilian garb into the from
tier townLindau on the Bodensee, was stopped
by the Bavarian police who charged him with
horse stealing. When he Indignantly showed
the Kings sealed packet, it was taken from
him and he was lodged in the town Jail, where
he was kept ancomaacdd0.
Ludwig's letter to the Comte de Paris,
written in his own hand in French and signed
Louis, was brought to Prince Luitpold in
Munich. 1t was read with CONSERVATION and
cot instant consideration from a further
Grown Council.
This was before the commission of doctors,
who we're to look into the monarch's sanity,
had been heard from. The Kings unexpected
move from Linderhof to N~euschWanstein had
sent them on a wild goose chase, whereof
Prince Luitpold was unaware as yet.
The Grown Council debated whether the
Kings attempt at selling Bavaria to France
was high treason or the vagary of a mailman.
They felt sure it was the latter. Therefore
they decided to force the Kings abdication.
Another commission was appointed to follow
the doctors to Linderhof. There, in case the
Il. - p1--1 H. TZ.A. - 49, 11oo ~, 4hO nsno
Regent commissioners were to demand Lud-
wigs abdication in favor Of his younger bro
ther, after which he was to be placed under
the care of the physicians.
The commissioners, so Erwin told me, were
the Minister Of the Royal House, Count Won
Crailsheim, Count Torring, Count Holnstein,
Baron Washington, whose great-grandfather
had been an Englishman, and DR.. Won Gudden,
tile head physician of the State Insane
Asylum.
Primeminister Won Lutz, fearful that Bis
marck, through his spies in France might
have learned Of the Bavarian Kings over
lures to the House of Orleans, himself told
the Prussian envoy in Munich of Ludwig's
intercepted letter to the Comte de Paris, call
ing it an act of madness, of a piece with other
symptoms Of a failing mind. The envoy in
formed his chief, Prince Bismarck; but al
ready the Iron Chancellor had heard from the
King and was at a loss what to think of the
conflicting reports from Bavaria. To his old
master, Emperor William, he voiced his grief
al King Ludwig's troubles.
The group of doctors had reached Under
hof after the King had just left his island
castle in the Chiemsee to drive over the
Schitzensteig to Neuschwanstein. From the
frightened servants they heard enough tales
of their royal masters excentricities to be-
come convinced Of his madness. They held
il to be hereditary in view of his brother