Hans and Sophie Scholl, often referred to in German as die Geschwister Scholl (literally: the Scholl siblings), were a brother and sister who were members of the White Rose, a student group in Munich that was active in the non-violentresistance movement in Nazi Germany, especially in distributing flyers against the war and the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler. In post-war Germany, Hans and Sophie Scholl are recognized as symbols of the Christian German resistance movement against the totalitarian Nazi regime. read more…
The Munich Security Conference (MSC; German: Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz) is an annual conference on international security policy that has taken place in Munich since 1963. Former names are Wehrkundetagung and Münchner Konferenz für Sicherheitspolitik. It is the world’s largest gathering of its kind. Over the past four decades the Munich Security Conference has become the most important independent forum for the exchange of views by international security policy decision-makers. Each year it brings together about 350 senior figures from more than 70 countries around the world to engage in an intensive debate on current and future security challenges. read more…
The Olympiapark München (English: Olympic Park Munich) in Munich is an Olympic Park which was constructed for the 1972 Summer Olympics. Located in the Oberwiesenfeld neighborhood of Munich, the Park continues to serve as a venue for cultural, social, and religious events such as events of worship. The Park is administered by Olympiapark München GmbH, a holding company fully owned by the state capital of Munich. The concept of a “green Olympic Games” was chosen, and so too was the orientation toward the ideals of democracy. Officials sought to integrate optimism toward the future with a positive attitude toward technology, and in so doing set aside memories of the past, such as the Olympic Games of 1936 in Berlin. The architecture firm of Günther Behnisch and its partners developed a comprehensive master plan for the sports and recreation area, which was under construction from 1968 until 1972. The landscape layout was designed by landscape architect Günther Grzimek. The eye-catching tensile structure that covers much of the park was designed by German architect and engineer Frei Otto with Günther Behnisch. In all, the project cost 1.35 billion German Marks to complete. read more…
The Nymphenburg Palace (“Castle of the Nymph“), is a Baroque palace in Munich, Bavaria. The palace was the main summer residence of the former rulers of Bavaria of the House of Wittelsbach. The palace, together with its park, is now one of the most famous sights of Munich. The baroque facades comprise an overall width of about 700 metres. Some rooms still show their original baroque decoration while others were later redesigned in rococo or neoclassical style. The palace serves also as headquarters of the Bavarian Administration of State-Owned Palaces, Gardens and Lakes. The palace was commissioned by the prince-electoral couple Ferdinand Maria and Henriette Adelaide of Savoy to the designs of the Italian architect Agostino Barelli in 1664 after the birth of their son Maximilian II Emanuel. The central pavilion was completed in 1675. As a building material it utilised limestone from Kelheim. The castle was gradually expanded and transformed over the years. Starting in 1701, Maximilian Emanuel, the heir to Bavaria, a sovereign electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, undertook a systematic extension of the palace. Two pavilions were added each in the south and north of Barelli’s palace by Enrico Zucalli and Giovanni Antonio Viscardi and were connected with the centre pavilion by two gallery wings. In 1716, Joseph Effner redesigned the facade of the centre pavilion in French Baroque style with pilasters. Later, the south section of the palace was further extended to build the court stables (1719). For the sake of balance, the orangery building was added to the north which was only completed in 1758. Finally, Nymphenburg Palace was completed with a grand circle (the Schlossrondell) of Baroque mansions (the so-called Kavaliershäuschen – cavalier’s lodges) erected under Maximilian Emanuel’s son Holy Roman Emperor Charles VII Albert. In 1795, Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria ordered the widening of the galleries on the park side. In 1826, under King Ludwig I of Bavaria, his architect Leo von Klenze removed the gables of the main pavilion with the Electoral coat of arms and created an attic style decoration directly under the roof instead. read more…
The Oberpollinger is a known department store in Neuhauser Strasse in Munich. It is run by the The KaDeWe Group GmbH and is the largest by area department store in southern Germany. The building was built in 1905 by Max Littmann in the style of historicism, in the form of Neo-Renaissance and is a listed building. read more…
The Bayerischer Hof on Promenadeplatz in the northwestern part of Munich is a five-star Grand Hotel. Built in 1841, it remains a destination for celebrities and guests of state in Munich. The hotel was erected in 1841 on behalf of Joseph Anton von Maffei according to plans by Friedrich von Gärtner. It initially had about 100 rooms and two halls. Some of its renowned guests included Empress Elisabeth of Austria and Sigmund Freud. In 1897 the Hotel was purchased for 2,850,000 Mark by Mark Hermann Volkhardt, who converted the facade to its historicism style. Performances in the grand ballroom at this time were made by artists such as Enrico Caruso along with many others. After the reconstruction period in 1924, the Bayerischer Hof was the largest hotel in Europe. During the Second World War the building suffered heavy damage, but was rebuilt after the war. read more…
Schwabing is Munich’s most versatile district being home to various theaters, museums, a university, the largest park in Europe, and shops that cater to those with money to burn. Schwabing’s highlight is the Englischer Garten, with endless bike and hiking trails, the Eisbach stream, and the makeshift concerts that are put on for people’s enjoyment, which makes this district the perfect place to end a day of sightseeing or a date. read more…
The Deutsches Museum (which means German Museum) in Munich, is the world’s largest museum of science and technology, with approximately 1.5 million visitors per year and about 28,000 exhibited objects from 50 fields of science and technology. read more…
