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　　　Nestled in the mountains of Bavaria, the fairy-tale castle of Neuschwanstein (New Swan Castle) stands as a king's tribute to the chivalry and magic of a mythical age.

　　The castle was the brainchild of Bavaria's “mad” King Ludwig Ⅱ. Inspired by Richard Wagner's operas, the young King Ludwig sought to re-create the legendary dreamworld of medieval knights and heroes. Accordingly, he employed scenic artists, sculptors, and stonemasons to turn that dreamworld into concrete reality.

　　In consultation with Wagner and various theatrical designers, plans for the castle were drawn up and the foundations laid in 1869. No expense was spared. Fourteen sculptors spent four-and-a-half years to complete the wood carvings in the king's bedroom. The floor of the throne room was composed of no fewer than 2 million stones. In all, 15 rooms were completed. Most depict scenes from the king's favorite operas---especially “Lohengrin,” the “Swan Knight.”

　　Like many an opera, Ludwig's life ended in tragedy.His fascination with castles led government officials to rebel. They accused him of neglecting his duty and forced him to abdicate. The following day, Ludwig was found drowned---in six inches of water.

　　But the mad king's unfinished dream lives on---a tribute to a “once upon a time” that never was.

　　It became everyone's idea of a fairy-tale castle, and the prototype for Walt Disney's Castle of the Sleeping Beauty.

　　新天鵝堡，一座童話般的城堡，座落在巴伐利亞山，它是一位國王對騎士精神的頌揚，也展現了神話時代的魅力。

　　這座城堡是巴伐利亞（對城堡）“著迷”的國王路德維希二世奇想的產兒。年輕的路德維希國王受到瓦格納歌劇的啟發，想要再造傳說中中世紀騎士英雄們的奇幻世界。因此，他雇了制造景觀的藝術家、雕刻家和石匠，來將這個夢幻世界變為現實。

　　在與瓦格納及多位劇場設計師商議后，畫出了城堡的平面圖，并于1869年奠基，不惜耗費巨資。14位雕刻家花了4年半的時間完成了國王臥室里的木雕品。王宮的地板至少由兩百萬塊石頭砌成。共建造了15個房間。多數繪畫取材于國王最喜愛的歌劇場景，特別是“羅格恩林”，即“天鵝騎士”。

　　路德維希的生活就像許多歌劇一樣，最終以悲劇告終。他對城堡的癡迷引起了政府官員們的反對。官員們譴責他荒廢國事，并迫使他退位。第二天，有人發現路德維希溺死在6英寸深的水中。

　　然而這位“癡迷”的國王沒有做完的美夢──對一個從未存在的“很久以前”（的童話）的頌揚，保存了下來。它成為所有人心目中童話城堡的形象，也成為了迪斯尼睡美人城堡的原型。