From the outside, the Walhalla resembles a Greek temple, but inside it honors notable German-speaking politicians, scientists, and artists.
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00:00Valhalla.
00:03Conceived in 1807 by Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria,
00:07this memorial is a hall of fame
00:09honouring distinguished German-speaking politicians,
00:12sovereigns, scientists and artists.
00:18Like Mozart, Beethoven, Rubens and Goethe, for example.
00:25Incidentally, it is mainly men who are represented here,
00:28as it often has been in history.
00:30Valhalla was built to celebrate the German nation.
00:33So, to find out more, let's head inside.
00:37I'm meeting Dr. Thorsten Mahr
00:39to find out why Valhalla was so important to the Bavarian prince.
00:45Crown Prince Ludwig just thought
00:47we should stick together if there are external dangers
00:53and if there are external dangers,
00:55we should stand and fight together.
00:58And with this monument, he hoped to strengthen
01:02the patriotism and the national consciousness among the Germans.
01:07You can not only see busts, even memorial plaques,
01:11and both together are commemorating notable figures
01:18who together embody the greatness of Germany.
01:22That was the idea.
01:24Where did the name Valhalla come from?
01:26I mean, that's a Nordic name, right?
01:28Why does it relate to, or how does it relate to Germany?
01:31In the Norse mythology, Valhalla was the hall of the heroes.
01:37And in the hall are all these brave,
01:42or the bravest warriors fallen in battle.
01:45They were coming together.
01:47And all these fallen warriors who are here
01:51are immortal because of their personal merit.
01:56Ludwig took the characteristics for his own Valhalla.
02:00So how does Valhalla hold a valid place in German thinking
02:06and society nowadays with Germany's history?
02:09After 1945, it was impossible to think about
02:14the German greatness or something like this.
02:17After the Holocaust and Nazi barbarism,
02:22it was definitely impossible.
02:24And so they were thinking of looking for another meaning.
02:29Another aspect became more important, in fact.
02:33The memory of the eventful German history.
02:38Sophie Scholl opposed the Nazi regime.
02:42She was captured by the Gestapo and finally murdered in 1943.
02:49With her, all the persons who resisted will be honored here.
02:57But that's very strong.
03:00That means everybody who resisted.
03:03And so we get politics into the Hall of Fame or the Valhalla.
03:07And it's not the Hall of Fame.
03:09It's the Hall of Memory.
03:11And so that's what it is today.
03:23Wow. Well, that was quite the experience.
03:26A real slice of German history.
03:28And to top it all off, the view from up here is absolutely incredible.