The history of the Munich court began when Duke Ludwig the Severe moved his court here from Landshut after the partition of Bavaria in 1255. As dukes, electors and finally kings, the Wittelsbachs developed their Residence from a small moated castle begun in 1385 to an extensive complex built around ten courtyards. For four centuries (until 1918) the Munich Residence was the seat of government and residence of the Wittelsbach dynasty. The palace spans the styles of four different centuries.

The Antiquarium is the largest Renaissance hall north of the Alps, while the symmetrical four-wing complex built by Duke Maximilian I is typical of the 17th century. The Ancestral Gallery and ‘Ornate Rooms’, designed by François Cuvilliés, are magnificent examples of the court Rococo style, and the neoclassical epoch is represented by the apartments in the Königsbau (King’s Tract, partly closed for restoration) designed by Leo von Klenze for King Ludwig I. The wall and ceiling paintings by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld in the Nibelungen Halls produced in the same period are the first monumental representations of the Nibelungenlied.

In addition to the rich accumulation of valuable furniture, paintings, sculptures, bronze work, clocks and tapestries, the museum rooms also contain numerous special collections