Disney castles were inspired by these real structures

Its inspiration was Neuschwanstein Castle, a Bavarian castle commissioned by King Ludwig II of Bavaria. King Stefan’s castle in Sleeping Beauty. However, like the Queen’s Castle in snow white, Disney added some elements for a more mysterious feel.

Cohen explains that many features of King Stefan’s palace refer to different eras: there are Renaissance towers, Gothic and Scandinavian towers, as well as Gothic pointed arches. While King Stefan’s castle is a bit lopsided when it comes to period accuracy, It served as a prototype for future Disney castles. In fact, the King’s castle, as well as Cinderella’s castle, were the inspiration for the Disney logo.

Mont Saint Michel

Corona Castle in tangled is “an excellent example of incorporating structure into a story”, Cohen says. The Disney animation is based on Mont Saint-Michel, where there was originally a Benedictine abbey on a small island off Normandy in France. Over time, the church became a prison, and in real life, Mont-Saint-Michel could only be reached twice a day at low tide. These two details metaphorically represent two important parts of the princess’ story: the prison symbolizes Rapunzel’s early life trapped in a tower, and the incoming and outgoing tides illustrate her hair, the limited means by which she had to communicate with the outside world.

Eileen Donan Castle and Denotar

Dunbrush brave Inspired by two stories in Scotland: Eileen Donan and Dunnottar Castle. Although the animation clearly reflects the actual structures – the stone facade and horizontal profile, in particular – there are some irregularities. For one thing, the story takes place in the 10th century, but as Cohen points out, castles weren’t built with stone until the 11th century. The mansion is also dilapidated, which would have been unusual if there were still people living in it, although Cohen explained that it could have been done. It symbolizes the tension between the clans in the film.

Taj Mahal