In the great courtyard of the palace he had a ring made where exhibitions of fancy riding were given before the ladies of the family and a few invited guests, Max himself often taking part. This became the favorite resort of his daughters in Winter, who would spend whole days there exercising, with their dogs and horses for companions, and it was here that Elizabeth of Austria and Maria Sophia of Naples acquired the skill that afterward made them the most perfect horsewomen of their day. Properly to classify a plant it is necessary to study the soil that has nourished it. That from which the Wittelsbach sisters sprung was Bavarian, of course, but more accurately speaking, the region about Possenhofen and Starnberg Lake, whither the family repaired every year with the first signs of Spring. The shores of Starnberg are fringed with castles, among them the solitary Schloss Feldafing, whence King Ludwig the Second flung himself into the waters of the lake. Back of these are many small villages interspersed with villas built by artists from Munich. Between lie stretches of dark pine forest or clumps of lighter beeches, their branches drooping over the surface of the water, while as a background to this entrancing scene rise majestic mountain peaks. Possenhofen was known in the twelfth century as “Pozzo’s Hof.” In the fifteenth it was presented by the Palatine Friedrich von Scheyern-Wittelsbach to a neighboring convent, but later it came into the possession of the Elector Ferdinand Maria of Bavaria, a peace-loving prince, who made Starnberg Lake the scene of many splendid _fêtes_. In 1834 Duke Max bought the castle, had the outer wall and vaulted gateway torn down and the moat filled in, thus making room for the large gardens that now surround Possenhofen. Outwardly the building was allowed to retain its original form, but the interior was completely changed. Four-post bedsteads, huge antique stoves, and chests of olden days were replaced by modern furniture and conveniences. An additional wing or two made room for guests, and a chapel was built, connecting the ancient edifice with its newer parts. The castle courtyard and gardens are still surrounded by a high wall, extending along the shore of the lake, and this with the old towers forms the last link with those days when Pozzo’s Hof served not only as a residence for its noble masters, but also as a stronghold against the enemies of the prince and people. Inside the wall rises the huge pile of reddish yellow stone, its whole eastern side covered with a natural mantle of ivy, making an attractive picture against the fresh green of the park and the gardens, with their flower-beds and fountains.