Andreeva Yu . The Swan King . — SPb. "The Wings", 2006. — 288 s. — (Series "Extra-Class History") . — ISBN 5-9717-0323-4 . In the summer of 1845 in Germany, two feuding knightly orders of St. George and the Illuminati were waiting for the birth of a miracle child. Some with hope, others with horror. After all, the ancient prophecy said that he would transform Bavaria and raise it above the entire Christian world... Such a long-awaited child, Ludwig II, was dazzlingly good himself, amazingly musical and plastic - for good reason the people called him the Swan King. This prince from the fairy tale was ideally suited to knightly castles and lake landscapes. But, barely ascending to the throne, Ludwig did not fight for the expansion of the land and saber-rattling, as well as to strengthen the authority adopted in the nineteenth century ways. His first royal decree read: "Deliver to Bavaria maestro Wagner! In my homeland, every person should listen to these divine sounds and join the high!". The Bavarians thought ...