The Wittelsbacher family
is a dynasty that ruled Bavaria for 738 years, from 1180 until 1918, first as dukes and then, from 1806, as kings. The Wittelsbachs were, next to the Habsburgs of Austria, one of the most important dynasties in European history because their marriage policy throughout the centuries ensured that members of their family became part of the bloodlines of just about every ruling house of note in Europe. One Wittelsbach or another held, at various times, such titles as Duke of Luxembourg, Duke of Palatine, King of Bohemia, King of Greece, King of Hungary, King of Sweden, and Emperor of Germany. Perhaps uniquely, however, the House of Wittelsbach played almost as great a role in the history of beer as it did in the history of Europe. The following are some of the milestones in the annals of the House of Wittelsbach and of beer: in 1269, the chronologically fourth Wittelsbach Duke of Bavaria, Ludwig “the Severe,” started Munich’s first brewery. In 1516, the Wittelsbach Duke Wilhelm IV proclaimed the “Bavarian Beer Purity Law” (Reinheitsgebot), which later evolved into a federal German law restricting beer ingredients to just water, yeast, malt, and hops. ... ...
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