Bavaria's oldest university, the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität started out as a political football for its rulers. Founded in Ingolstadt in 1472, the university moved to Landshut in 1800 before being shifted to Munich in 1826 by newly crowned King Ludwig I. It has produced more than a dozen Nobel Prize winners, including Wilhelm Röntgen in 1901 (Physics) and Theodor Hänsch in 2005 (Physics).
The main building, by Friedrich von Gärtner of course, has cathedral-like dimensions and is accented with sculpture and other artworks. A flight of stairs leads to a light court with a memorial to Die Weisse Rose, the Nazi resistance group founded by Hans and Sophie Scholl. To get the full story, visit the small DenkStätte in the vaulted space behind.
