157 years ago today, February 29, 1868 (February 7, 1868 in the lunar calendar), King Ludwig I of Bavaria passed away. Ludwig I of Bavaria (August 25, 1786-February 29, 1868), full name Ludwig Karl August, King of the Kingdom of Bavaria (1825-March 20, 1848). The eldest son of Maximilian I, the first king of Bavaria, and his mother was Augusta Wilhelmina, Princess of Hesse. Born in Strasbourg on August 25, 1786. The name Ludwig comes from his godfather, King Louis XVI of France. On October 12, 1810, when he was still Crown Prince, he married Princess Theresa of Saxony Hildeberghausen, and the celebration of the marriage in Munich turned into the annual Oktoberfest. In 1825, Ludwig's father Maximilian I died and he inherited his father's throne of Bavaria. In order to speed up the integration of the newly added territory with the original Bavarian territory, he added the titles of Duke of Francia and Schwabian to the title of King of Bavaria. Ludwig I was a lover of classical art. During his Crown Prince era, he began to acquire art, especially art treasures from ancient Greece and Rome, and maintained contact with many art masters at that time. Shortly after his marriage, he initiated the construction of the Glyptothek Museum to display his collection of ancient Greek and Roman sculptures. After he ascended the throne, he built Munich into a city of art: he recruited famous artists and architects of the time such as Leovon Klenze (designer of the Grytaud Museum) and Peter von Cornelius to Munich; built the Ludwigstrasse and the Munich Palace; built the Neue Pinakothek in 1853; and moved the Bavarian State University from Landshut to Munich in 1826. Many of the buildings in Munich today are products of the era of Ludwig I. Ludwig I also encouraged the development of industry. He ordered the construction of Germany's first railway (from Nuremberg to Fürth in 1835), named the "Bayerische Ludwigsbahn"; he later built the second, the "Palatz-Ludwig Railway" from Ludwigshafen to Bexbach. He also initiated the construction of the Ludwig Canal connecting the River Main and the Danube, thus connecting the North Sea and the Black Sea. When Ludwig I came to power, his political inclinations were more relaxed. Ludwig I supported the Greek War of Independence, and in 1832 his second son Otto was elected King of Greece. After the July Revolution in France in 1830 and the development of the revolutionary movement in Europe, his political tendencies became increasingly reactionary. The conflict between the people of the Palatinate and the Bavarian authorities deepened, and the Hambach uprising broke out in the Palatinate in 1832. Ludwig I strengthened the censorship mechanism for books, periodicals and letters, which met with widespread opposition from the people. He was romantic by nature, and the 36 beauties in the Beauty Gallery of Nymphenburg Palace witnessed this history. The scandal with his mistress Lola Montes deepened the people's resistance. In the end, Ludwig I was forced to abdicate in the 1848 Revolution in Europe, giving way to his eldest son Maximilian II. Ludwig I died on February 29, 1868 in Nice, France, at the age of 81.