by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2012

The traditional burial site for the Electors of Bavaria was the Theatinerkirche St. Kajetan (Theatine Church of St Cajetan) in Munich. It was established by Elector Ferdinand Maria and his wife Henriette of Savoy and was built in thanks for the birth of his heir, the future Elector Maximilian II in 1662. A small chapel to the side of the Main Altar contains the entrance to the Royal Crypt, containing the tombs of most of the Electors and their wives, as well as several members of the subsequent Bavarian Royal Family. The church itself also contains another small chapel with the tombs of King Maximilian II and his wife Queen Marie (née Princess Marie of Prussia).

• Unofficial Royalty: Theatine Church of St Cajetan in Munich, Germany
• Official Website: Theatinerkirche München (in German)

Besides the Theatine Church, rulers of the House of Wittelsbach have been interred at the Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady) in Munich, Michaelskirche (St. Michael’s Church) in Munich, and the Andechs Monastery in Andechs. In 1977, Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria, head of the House of Wittelsbach and pretender to the former Bavarian throne from 1955 until his death in 1996, set up a Wittelsbach family cemetery near Andechs Abbey due to the lack of space in the other Wittelsbach burial sites. The cemetery complex is now the main burial place of the Wittelsbach family.

• Unofficial Royalty: Cathedral of Our Lady (Frauenkirche) in Munich, Germany
• Unofficial Royalty: St. Michael’s Church in Munich, Germany

Monarchs of Bavaria:

• Maximilian I (reigned 1806-1825)
• Ludwig I (reigned 1825-1848)
• Maximilian II (reigned 1848-1864)
• Ludwig II (reigned 1864-1886)
• Otto I (reigned 1886-1913)
• Prince Luitpold (reigned 1886-1912 as regent for Kings Ludwig II and Otto I)
• Ludwig III (reigned 1912-1913 as regent for King Otto I; r. 1913-1918 as King)

Maximilian I Joseph
reigned January 1, 1806 – October 13, 1825

Unofficial Royalty: Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria

Maximilian was born May 27, 1756, the son of Frederick Michael of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld and Maria Francisca of Sulzbach. In February 1799, he succeeded his cousin Elector of Bavaria, as Maximilian IV Joseph. On January 1, 1806, Bavaria was declared a Kingdom, and Maximilian took the throne as King Maximilian I. He married twice – first to Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt, and second to Caroline of Baden. Among his 11 children are two Queens of Saxony, a Queen of Prussia, and an Empress of Austria.

King Maximilian I died October 13, 1825, and is buried with his second wife in the Crypt at the Theatinekirche in Munich.

Landrgravine Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt

Wikipedia: Landgravine Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt

Augusta Wilhelmine was born in Darmstadt on April 14, 1765, the daughter of Prince Georg Wilhelm of Hesse-Darmstadt and Princess Maria Louise of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg. She married Maximilian, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken (the future King Maximilian I) in Darmstadt on September 30, 1785.

Augusta died on March 30, 1796, in Rohrbach. She is buried at the Stadtkirche in Darmstadt.

Princess Caroline of Baden

Unofficial Royalty: Caroline of Baden

Princess Caroline of Baden was born July 13, 1776, to Charles Louis, Hereditary Prince of Baden and Landgravine Amelie of Hesse-Darmstadt. On March 9, 1797, she married the future King Maximilian I who had been widowed a year earlier. Caroline would become the first Queen of Bavaria when the Electorate was elevated to a Kingdom in 1806.

Queen Caroline died November 13, 1841. She is buried with her husband in the Crypt at the Theatinerkirche in Munich.

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King Ludwig I of Bavaria
reigned October 13, 1825 – March 20, 1848

Unofficial Royalty: Ludwig I of Bavaria

Ludwig was born August 25, 1786, in Strasbourg, the son of King Maximilian I and his first wife, Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt. He married Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen on October 12, 1810. Their nine children include his son Maximilian II who succeeded him and his son Otto who was elected King of Greece in 1833. Amidst the revolutions of 1848, and his unwillingness to rule as a constitutional monarch, Ludwig abdicated on March 20, 1848, in favor of his son.

King Ludwig I died in Nice on February 29, 1868. He is buried with his wife at St Boniface’s Abbey in Munich.

Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen

Unofficial Royalty: Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen

Therese was born July 8, 1792, to Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg and Duchess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. She married the future King Ludwig I on October 12, 1810, and the couple had nine children.

Queen Therese died on October 26, 1854, in Munich. She is buried with her husband at St Boniface’s Abbey in Munich.

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King Maximilian II of Bavaria
reigned March 20, 1848 – March 10, 1864

Unofficial Royalty: Maximilian II of Bavaria

Maximilian II was born in Munch on November 28, 1811, to King Ludwig I and Theresa of Saxe-Hildburghausen. He married Princess Marie of Prussia on October 12, 1842. Their two sons both became Kings of Bavaria, and both suffered mental illness resulting in a Regency being established, with Maximilian’s brother Luitpold serving as Regent.

The King died on March 10, 1864, and is buried with his wife in a side chapel in the Theatinerkirche in Munich.

Marie of Prussia

Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Prussia

Marie was born in Berlin on October 15, 1825, the daughter of Prince Wilhelm of Prussia and Landgravine Marie Anna of Hesse-Homburg. She married the future King Maximilian II on October 12, 1842, and they had two sons – both of whom would become Kings of Bavaria.

Queen Marie died May 17, 1889, at Hohenschwangau Castle. She is buried with her husband in a side chapel in the Theatinerkirche in Munich.

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King Ludwig II
reigned March 10, 1864 – June 13, 1886

Unofficial Royalty: Ludwig II of Bavaria

Ludwig was born August 25, 1845, the elder son of King Maximilian II and Marie of Prussia. Ludwig was perhaps the most famous of the monarchs of Bavaria, known for his Neuschwanstein Castle. He was known as ‘Mad King Ludwig’ and eventually a regency was established, with his uncle Luitpold appointed as Regent.

King Ludwig II died on June 13, 1886, under mysterious circumstances. His body, along with that of the doctor who had declared him insane, was found floating in Lake Starnberg. Officially, his death was ruled a suicide. He is buried in the Crypt of the Michaelskirche (St Michael’s Church) in Munich.

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King Otto I
reigned June 13, 1886 – November 5, 1913

Unofficial Royalty: Otto of Bavaria

Otto was born on April 27, 1848, the younger son of King Maximilian II and Marie of Prussia. He began to show signs of mental illness shortly after the death of his father and accession of his older brother to the throne in 1864, and by early 1872, he was officially declared ‘mentally ill’, and from then on, Otto lived nearly in isolation at various royal palaces. When his brother died in 1886, Otto became King, however under the Regency of his uncle Luitpold, and later Luitpold’s son Ludwig. In 1913, the Bavarian constitution was changed, to allow for the end of the regency for reasons of incapacity of over ten years. King Otto was deposed, and the Regent acceded to the throne as King Ludwig III. Otto retained all of his titles and honors, resulting in Bavaria having two kings for nearly three years.

King Otto died October 11, 1916, at Fürstenried Palace in Munich. He is buried in the Crypt of the Michaelskirche (St Michael’s Church) in Munich.

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Prince Regent Luitpold
served as Regent June 10, 1886 – December 12, 1912

Unofficial Royalty: Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria

Prince Luitpold was born March 12, 1821, in Würzburg, the third son of King Ludwig I and Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. He married Archduchess Augusta of Austra on April 1, 1844, and the couple had 4 children, including the future King Ludwig III. Luitpold was appointed Regent for his nephew, King Ludwig II, on June 10, 1886. Upon his death, the regency passed to his son, Prince Ludwig, who would later become King Ludwig III.

Prince Luitpold died on December 12, 1912. He is buried in the Crypt of the Theatinerkirche in Munich.

Archduchess Auguste of Austria

Unofficial Royalty: Archduchess Auguste Ferdinande of Austria

Auguste was born April 1, 1825, in Florence, to Leopold II, Grand Duke of Tuscany and Maria Anna of Savoy. She married Prince Luitpold of Bavaria on April 1, 1844.

She died April 26, 1864, at the age of 39, and is buried beside her husband in the Crypt of the Theatinerkirche in Munich.

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King Ludwig III of Bavaria
reigned November 5, 1913 – November 7, 1918

Unofficial Royalty: King Ludwig III of Bavaria

Ludwig was born January 7, 1845, in Munich, the eldest child of Prince Luitpold and Archduchess Auguste of Austria. On February 20, 1868, he married Archduchess Maria Theresia of Austria-Este, and they had 13 children. Upon his father’s death, Ludwig became Regent for his cousin King Otto. Several months later, Otto was deposed and Ludwig became King Ludwig III, the last reigning monarch of Bavaria.

King Ludwig III died on October 18, 1921, at Nádasdy Castle, in Sarvar, Hungary He is buried with his wife in the Frauenkirche (Cathedral of our Dear Lady) in Munich.

Archduchess Maria Theresia of Austria-Este

Unofficial Royalty: Maria Theresia of Austria-Este

Maria Theresia was born July 2, 1849, to Archduke Ferdinand of Austria-Este and Archduchess Elisabeth Franziska of Austria. She married the future King Ludwig III or February 20, 1868. She became the last Queen of Bavaria in 1913 when her husband became King.

Queen Maria Theresia died February 3, 1919, at Wildenwart Castle near Frasdorf, just 3 months after her husband was deposed. She was initially buried at the local chapel, but after her husband’s death, her remains were removed and she was reburied, with her husband, at the Frauenkirche in Munich.

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