by Sandra Petersen

Created on: July 27, 2011   Last Updated: July 28, 2011

For most of its early years from 555 AD to 1806, Bavaria was a duchy. It was ruled by Carolingian dukes until 788 AD and then the Welfs. The first Wittelsbach duke to rule the region of Bavaria was Otto I Wittelsbach in 1180. Until 1806, Bavaria was under the rule of members of this bloodline. These rulers were considered prince electors, not kings.

In 1806, the status of Bavaria changed. The former duchy became a kingdom with a king to reign over the land. The Peace Treaty of Pressburg forged between Emperor Franz II and France under Napoleon Bonaparte was responsible for the formation of Bavaria as a kingdom. While Bavaria was now under the rule of a king a constitution was not drawn up until 1818, when Bavaria became a constitutional monarchy.

This lasted until 1871 when the kingdom was absorbed by the Deutsche Reich. Because the kingdom was so large, it was given the right to retain its king. By 1918, the Wittelsbach line and the monarchy ended. From 1806 to 1918, Bavaria had six kings, all from the Wittelsbach bloodline.

King Maximilian I (1806-1825)

The first Wittelsbach king of Bavaria was Maximilian IV Joseph who took the title King Maximilian I of Bavaria. He was the Duke of Zweibrucken from 1795 to 1806 before ascending to the throne. He melded the diverse regions into a more efficiently administered kingdom. In 1808 Bavaria adopted a liberal constitution.

Prior to his reign, the Bavarian dukes supported Napoleon and France. Under his rule, Bavaria switched allegiance in 1813 after Napoleon's defeat in Russia. When the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) rewarded the victors, Bavaria was allowed to keep land it gained during the Napoleonic Wars . Under the rule of King Maximilian I, Bavaria retained the land from the Rhine in Prussian territory to Alsace. The city of Mainz was included. In 1818, the kingdom received its charter to form a bicameral parliament, a very liberal concept among the German kingdoms.

King Ludwig I Augustus (1825-1848)

Although he was married to Theresa von Sachsen-Hildburghausen in 1810, prior to his reign as Bavaria's monarch, the annual celebrations of then Prince Ludwig I's marriage eventually became what we know now as Oktoberfest. During his reign, Ludwig I commanded that Bavarian brewers make ale for use during the colder months. From this royal command came the first biergartens and beer halls for which Munich became known.

King Ludwig I was the monarch most responsible for making the city of Munich a cultural arts and academic

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