The largest Renaissance church north of the Alps, Michaelskirche was constructed by Duke Wilhelm the Pious in 1583. Seven years into construction, the tower collapsed. The duke took this as divine portent that the church was not large enough. During the second phase of construction, the size of the church was dramatically increased, making it not only the largest one north of the Alps, but the possessor of the world's second-largest barrel-vaulted roof. Among those who have been laid to rest in the crypt are Duke Wilhelm himself and more than 40 Wittelsbachs, including \"Mad\" King Ludwig II, perhaps the family's most notorious member.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Munich & the Bavarian Alps, 6th Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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