The University was founded in 1868 initially as the Polytechnische Schule München (Polytechnic School, Munich) before being renamed in 1877 to The Royal Bavarian Technical University of Munich. or more commonly the 'Technische Hochschule, München'. The surveying engineer Karl Maximilian von Bauernfeind became its first director. Subject coverage and teaching expanded throughout th 20th century, and in 1970 it changed its name to the Technische Universität München' (Technical University, Munich), the name by which it still operates.