Europe
Germany
Donaustauf
Monument
Walhalla
Name:Walhalla
Construction period:1830 – 1842
Commissioned by:King Ludwig I of Bavaria
Architect:Leo von Klenze
Number of busts:132
Number of commemorative plaques:65
Ascent:358 steps
Building materials:mostly limestone and marble

18 Fascinating Facts about the Walhalla national monument

 

  1. Location: Walhalla is located east of Regensburg on a hill above the Danube near Donaustauf. Its elevated position offers sweeping views over the Danube valley and the surrounding landscape of the Upper Palatinate.
  2. Significance: Walhalla attracts over 200,000 visitors each year and ranks among the most important attractions in the Regensburg area. It is also regarded as one of the most significant German national monuments of the 19th century.
  3. Historical Context: The idea for Walhalla emerged at a time when the German-speaking world was divided into numerous individual states and remained politically fragmented. Many of these regions had previously belonged to the Holy Roman Empire, a centuries-old political entity in Central Europe that encompassed kingdoms, principalities, bishoprics, and free cities, yet never formed a unified nation-state. When the empire collapsed in 1806 under pressure from Napoleon, the political weakness of the German-speaking lands became particularly evident. In response, Crown Prince Ludwig I of Bavaria set out to create a place that would unite outstanding figures of the German language and establish a shared cultural memory.
  4. Planning: As early as 1807, Crown Prince Ludwig I of Bavaria commissioned the first busts of notable figures, even though neither a location nor a concrete architectural concept had been defined. In 1814, he launched a competition, which led in 1815 to the first architectural proposal by Andreas Gärtner. In the years that followed, Leo von Klenze further developed this design and refined it into the final concept for Walhalla.
  5. Construction History: Construction of Walhalla began in 1830 under the direction of Leo von Klenze. Drawing clear inspiration from the Parthenon in Athens, he designed a monumental neoclassical structure that combined ancient temple forms with advanced 19th-century building techniques. After 12 years of construction, Walhalla was officially opened in 1842.
  6. Construction Costs and Financing: Walhalla cost nearly 4 million guilders, roughly equivalent to over 100 million euros today, making it one of the most expensive building projects commissioned by Ludwig I of Bavaria. He personally covered the majority of the expenses, financing the project from his private wealth as well as from the monarchic funds available to him.
  7. Architecture: Walhalla is designed as a monumental ensemble in which the ascent via terraces and the massive substructure already forms part of the overall experience. At the top stands a temple clearly inspired by the Parthenon, whose strict symmetry reflects the architectural language of classical antiquity. Inside, a highly advanced iron framework for its time supports the roof and allows for large, open spaces without additional columns.
  8. Marble Busts: Walhalla currently houses 132 busts that form the core of the hall of fame as deliberately uniform marble portraits. The older busts were mostly carved from Carrara marble, while more recent additions also use other light-colored types such as Laas marble. They are generally life-size or slightly larger than life, giving the honored figures a dignified and present appearance without appearing overly monumental. The two most recent additions to Walhalla are the busts of Käthe Kollwitz from 2019 and Max Planck from 2022.
  9. Male Figures: Among the honored men in Walhalla are many influential figures from literature, music, science, and politics. Particularly well known are Johann Wolfgang von Goethe as a poet, Martin Luther as a reformer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven as composers, and Max Planck as a physicist and pioneer of modern quantum physics. Notable rulers and military leaders also include Frederick II of Prussia as a king and military strategist, Helmuth von Moltke as a Prussian field marshal and army reformer, and Josef Wenzel Radetzky as an Austrian field marshal.
  10. Male Figures: Among the honored men in Walhalla are many influential figures from literature, music, science, and politics. Particularly well known are Johann Wolfgang von Goethe as a poet, Martin Luther as a reformer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven as composers, and Max Planck as a physicist and pioneer of modern quantum physics. Notable rulers and military leaders also include Frederick II of Prussia as a king and military strategist, Helmuth von Moltke as a Prussian field marshal and army reformer, and Josef Wenzel Radetzky as an Austrian field marshal.
  11. Statue of Ludwig I: A dedicated statue of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, the founder of Walhalla, was installed in the hall in 1890. Positioned freely at the front, it deliberately sets him apart from the other honored figures. The larger-than-life marble sculpture shows Ludwig I seated in a classical-style robe with a laurel wreath, presenting him as the dignified patron of the hall of fame.
  12. Selection Criteria: In principle, new busts can be proposed by anyone, but inclusion is only possible at least 20 years after a person’s death and requires outstanding achievements in politics, social affairs, science, or the arts. An additional official criterion is that the proposed individual must belong to the Germanic language family. Proposals are typically reviewed first by the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts and the Bavarian Academy of Sciences before the Bavarian Council of Ministers makes the final decision. New busts are usually added every five to seven years, and the costs of creation and installation are generally covered by the initiators themselves.
  13. Figural Frieze: The surrounding figural frieze by Martin von Wagner is located inside the hall of fame and runs above the busts and below the upper gallery with the commemorative plaques, encircling the entire space. In a series of scenes, it presents an idealized history of the Germanic peoples from their early origins to their Christianization. It reflects less historical reality than the national romantic view of history typical of the 19th century.
  14. Commemorative Plaques: Alongside the busts, the commemorative plaques form the second major type of honor in Walhalla and primarily commemorate individuals or events for which no reliable portrait existed for a bust. The plaques installed in 1842 are mounted high on the walls in 2 rows and, like the busts, are arranged chronologically by year of death. Their short inscriptions record names, classifications, and dates. Among the most well-known figures honored are Arminius as a Cheruscan leader, Charlemagne as emperor, Hildegard of Bingen as an abbess and scholar, Boniface as a missionary, Walther von der Vogelweide as a poet, and Peter Henlein as a clockmaker.
  15. Goddesses of Victory: The six goddesses of victory by Christian Daniel Rauch are among the most important artworks in Walhalla and stand inside the hall along the walls between the busts and commemorative plaques. Created in marble between 1832 and 1842, the figures embody different forms of victory, fame, and remembrance through varied poses. The most famous is the wreath-throwing Victoria, considered a masterpiece of the Berlin school of sculpture and a striking representation of triumph.
  16. Pediments: The pediments are the large triangular sculptural fields on the two front sides of Walhalla and form part of its exterior façade. The north pediment depicts the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD, in which Germanic tribes led by Arminius defeated the Roman forces under Publius Quinctilius Varus and destroyed three Roman legions. The south pediment presents the liberation of Germany in 1814 as a symbolic scene centered on the figure Germania, with the German states approaching from both sides.
  17. Substructure: The substructure forms a monumental terraced base that supports the temple and stabilizes the hillside. Inside is the so-called Hall of Expectation, originally intended as an additional space for future busts of distinguished figures. Today, this area is generally not accessible and can only be visited on rare special guided tours.
  18. Origin of the Name: The name Walhalla derives from the Old Norse word Valhǫll and roughly translates as hall of the fallen. In Norse mythology, it referred to the place where fallen warriors were received.