Disney's Sleeping Beauty Castle
Disneyland's Magic Kingdom Castle Ages on Collectible Postcards
By comparing various ages of postcards, you can see that Sleeping Beauty's Castle has evolved more than one would think.
The idea for a castle as the focal point or anchor for the Disneyland theme park Walt Disney imagined first appeared on paper in December 1952 when a map of the proposed park was drawn by WED Enterprises. The castle was named for Sleeping Beauty as advance publicity for the newest Disney animated film of the same name.
Sleeping Beauty Castle is the smallest of the Disney castles, rising only 77 feet into the air. Walt built it small on purpose, feeling that it would be friendlier that way as opposed to the huge imposing structures built by tyrants in Europe. The design of the castle was based partly on King Ludwig II of Bavaria’s Neuschwanstein Castle and partly on French designs. The Disney logo is carved over the main entrance; the spires are adorned with 22-karat gold-leaf and the gargoyles are actually little squirrels.
Construction on the park began in July 1954 in the center of 160 acres of orange groves near Anaheim, Orange County, California. Sleeping Beauty Castle began as two long buildings that would house the Snow White, Peter Pan and Mr. Toad attractions on opening day. The walls and turrets that comprise the castle and join with the earlier buildings to form the courtyard would be built early in 1955.
Sleeping Beauty Castle is the entrance to Fantasyland, "the happiest kingdom of them all". From April 1957 there was a walk-through display just inside the castle entrance showing miniature scenes from the then still-in-production animated film Sleeping Beauty. It still exists in a scaled down form to this day.
Sleeping Beauty Castle has a working drawbridge that has only been raised officially on two occasions once on opening day and again when Fantasyland was revitalized in 1983.
Early Postcards
There was still a lot of work to be done in Disneyland on opening day. As an early postcard of Sleeping Beauty Castle shows the moat is a muddy brown, a fire hydrant is very much a sore thumb and the lawns are not yet established (see below).
By the time the next postcard was printed ivy had begun to grow on the walls of the castle, flowers were in bloom along the edge of the moat and the Matterhorn Mountain had risen in the background (see below).
The Fantasy in the Sky fireworks display was born from Walt’s desire to have something to attract visitors to the park after dark. Using Sleeping Beauty Castle as a backdrop for the pyrotechnics display, the show became an instant hit and was soon part of the entire Disneyland experience (see below). Beginning in 1958 the display was destined for an incredible 42-year run, ending in 2000. The most noticeable transformation of Sleeping Beauty Castle happened in 2005 when the building was festooned for the 50th Anniversary celebrations. The walls and archway received a layer of gold paint and gold crowns were placed atop its five turrets and towers, one for each decade. Over the main entrance a huge pair of Mickey ears with the number 50 and the word Disneyland appeared (see below).
What’s next for Disney’s friendly castle? Only time will tell. Fortunately, Sleeping Beauty Castle postcards are still easily obtainable. A history of the castle collection can be easily and inexpensively built and will be a joy to behold for many years to come.
For more postcards and behind the scenes information on Disneyland see Splash Mountain and Casey Jr. Circus Train on Postcards
Card #1 – "The land of enchantment lies beyond the drawbridge guarding the entrance to Sleeping Beauty’s Castle at Disneyland. Beyond the castle, Fantasyland comes to life with gay rides in the Disney fashion." (P12284) c Walt Disney Productions
Card #2 – "Sleeping Beauty’s Enchanted Castle stands guard over the entrance to Fantasyland, sharing its skyline with Disneyland Matterhorn." (D-1) c Walt Disney Productions
Card #3 – "Summer evenings mean spectacular "Fantasy in the Sky" fireworks bursting behind the magical setting of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle." (DL-1201-G) c Walt Disney Productions
Card #4 – Sleeping Beauty Castle festooned in gold crowns and banners for Disneyland’s 50th Anniversary celebration. (00009-28044) c Disney
