The Hohenschwangau castle was reconstructed by crown prince Max of Bavaria, his father Ludwig II. and later king Maximilian II. of Bavaria from 1832 to 1838. For this task the crown prince enlisted the brothers Quaglio.
As king Ludwig II. moved to Munich, his mother Marie of Bavaria took residence in Hohenschwangau. After the suicide of her son she lived here for three years before dying. In the following years the castle was only used sporadically. Only in 1941 a member of the former royal family took residence in the castle again. The reason for this was quite simple: The so called "Prince Act" ruled that princes were not allowed to serve in the Wehrmacht and thus the prince moved back to Hohenschwangau. Currently the castle is not owned by the former royal family. The current owner is the so called Wittelsbacher Ausgleichsfonds.
To cover the upkeep of the castle a museum has been opened on the property to showcase the astonishing furnishings and possessions of the Wittelsbacher family.