King Max II Joseph
After King Ludwig I resigned from office, his son Max II Joseph took over the business of government. His endeavor was to secure Bavaria's independence in the German Confederation. With the appointment of well-known professors and the organization of symposia with the intellectual elite, he strengthened Munich's reputation as a university city. In addition, in 1876 he founded the Maximilianeum, a gifted foundation for Bavarian and Palatinate students. Meanwhile at Nymphenburg, in view of the increasing industrialization, artistic commissions faded more and more into the background. After careful consideration, Max II Joseph agreed to privatize the manufacture. From 1862 it was leased until it was returned to the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund in 1975. With that Nymphenburg returned to the patronage of the Bavarian royal family.