Friedrich III of Germany (Hohenzollern)
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Frederick III
German Emperor, King of Prussia
Frederick III as crown prince
Reign	9 March – 15 June 1888
Born	18 October 1831(1831-10-18)
Birthplace	Potsdam, Prussia
Died	15 June 1888 (aged 56)
Place of death	Potsdam, German Empire
Predecessor	William I
Successor	William II
Consort	Victoria, Princess Royal
Offspring	William II Princess Charlotte Prince Heinrich Prince Sigismund Princess Viktoria Prince Waldemar Princess Sophie Princess Margaret
Royal House	Hohenzollern
Royal anthem	Heil dir im Siegerkranz (unofficial)
Father	William I
Mother	Augusta of Saxe-Weimar

Frederick III (Frederick William Nicholas Charles, German: Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl; October 18, 1831 – June 15, 1888), (German: Friedrich III., Deutscher Kaiser und König von Preußen) was German Emperor and King of Prussia, ruling for 99 days until his death in 1888.

Early life

Frederick William (as he was known before he assumed the throne), nicknamed 'Fritz', was born in the New Palace at Potsdam, a scion of the House of Hohenzollern. His father, Prince William of Prussia was a younger brother of King Frederick William IV of Prussia. Prussia at the time was no more than an average military state, recovering at the time from the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars.^[1] His mother, Princess Augusta of Saxe-Weimar, had been brought up in a very different atmosphere. Weimar was the first German state to grant its subjects a constitution. His parents' marriage was also not a love match. Frederick's parents were quite ill-suited to one another. His father had been in love with his cousin Elisa Radziwill, a minor Princess of the Polish aristocracy. He was forced to give her up due to her unequal rank and marry a dynastically suitable Princess. This he did out of duty.^[1] Princess Augusta was well known across Europe for her liberal views.^[2] It is not surprising therefore that Frederick's adult memories were always of a lonely childhood in a home dominated by his ill-matched parents.^[3] He had one sister, Louise, later Grand Duchess of Baden. Although Fritz was eight years Louise's senior (he was born 1831; Louise in 1839, making her only one year older than her future sister-in-law), the two siblings were very close.

Education

The Hohenzollern family traditionally valued a military education. It was Frederick's mother that insisted that her son be educated according to liberal ideas.^[3] Therefore his education was closely supervised and extremely thorough. He was a talented student and was particularly good at foreign languages. He became fluent in English and French and also studied Latin as well as History, Geography, Physics, Music and Religion. Frederick was also good at gymnastics and became very good rider as required of a Prussian Prince.^[4] Like all Hohenzollern Princes he became familiar from a particularly young age with the military traditions of the dynasty. At the age of ten, in accordance with family tradition, he was commissioned second lieutenant in the First Infantry Regiment of Guards, and was invested with the Order of the Black Eagle.^[5] As a Prussian Prince, Frederick was expected to become actively involved as a military commander and strategist.^[5] Later, breaking with Hohenzollern tradition, he studied history, literature and law at the University at Bonn. His future father-in-law, Prince Albert, had studied there.^[6]

Marriage and Family

Victoria, Princess Royal, eldest daughter of Queen Victoria, whom Frederick married in 1858

As early as 1851, there were plans to marry Frederick to Victoria, Princess Royal ("Vicky") of Great Britain and Ireland, the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. At the christening of the future King Edward VII, Frederick's uncle, King Frederick William IV of Prussia, was godfather and had also dandled the Princess Royal on his knee. The Royal dynasty in Britain was predominantly German; there was little British blood in Queen Victoria and none in her husband.^[7] The idea of Frederick marrying the Princess Royal was considered to be a very good idea by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Nobody welcomed the prospect of closer connections with Britain more than Princess Augusta. Prince William had been indifferent to the idea and had hoped for a marriage with a Russian Grand Duchess.^[7] King Leopold I of Belgium, uncle of both Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, had long treasured the idea of Baron Stockmar of a marriage alliance between Britain and Prussia.^[8] Prince Albert hoped that the marriage would lead to the liberalization and modernization of Prussia. The betrothal of the young couple was announced in April 1856.^[9] The wedding was on January 25, 1858, in the Chapel of St. James's Palace, London. To mark the occasion, Frederick was promoted to Major-General in the Prussian army. The marriage was a great love match.^[10] The rigorously educated Vicky, also known as the Princess Royal, shared her husband's liberal views. The couple had eight children during their marriage: William in 1859, Charlotte in 1860, Henry in 1862, Sigismund in 1864, Victoria in 1866, Waldemar in 1868, Sophie in 1870 and Margaret in 1872. Sadly, both Princes Sigismund and Waldemar died in childhood. Frederick's eldest son, William, suffered from a withered arm due to his difficult breech birth (which nearly killed both mother and son). Relations between both parents and William would prove to be difficult as the years went by.

Crown Prince

Article in the Illustrated London News of August 20, 1870 celebrating Crown Prince Frederick William's achievements in the Franco-Prussian War

On January 2, 1861, Frederick William's father became King William I of Prussia, and Frederick William himself became Crown Prince at the age of twenty-nine. It was a role he was destined to play until the long-delayed death of his father on March 9, 1888. William's accession did not usher in the new era for which Frederick and the liberal elements in Prussia had hoped. The elections of December 1861 returned a greatly increased liberal majority in the Prussian Diet. Frederick declared himself in complete agreement with the "essential liberal policy for internal and foreign affairs."^[11]

But the new King was an obstinate old soldier, not likely to change his conservative ideas at the age of sixty-four.^[12] Frederick very nearly became King in September 1862. When the Diet refused funds for his army reorganization, William threatened to abdicate.^[13] Frederick was appalled, saying that an abdication would "constitute a threat to the dynasty, country and Crown."^[13] William did not abdicate; instead he appointed Bismarck as Minister-President. The arrival of Bismarck, an authoritarian who often ignored or overruled the Diet,^[14] set Frederick on a collision course with his father on policy and led to his exclusion from affairs of state for the rest of the reign. A united Germany was not to be achieved through liberal and peaceful means but through Bismarck's policy of blood and iron.

Frederick was severely reproached by his father for his liberal ideas. As a result of these disagreements, Frederick went frequently to England with his family (which William approved). There Queen Victoria allowed him to deputize for her on numerous occasions.^[15]

Military commander

Crown Prince Frederick formed a partnership with General Leonhard Graf von Blumenthal, his Chief of Staff, through whom he was able to command victorious armies in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. The timely arrival of his troops was crucial to the Prussian victory at Sadowa. After the battle, William presented Frederick with the Order Pour le Mérite, as a mark of personal gallantry on the field. A few days before Sadowa, Frederick had written to his wife hoping that this would be the last war he would have to fight. On the third day of the battle he wrote again to her, "Who knows whether we may not have to wage a third war in order to keep what we have now won?"^[16] As commander, Frederick also had great victories in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, where he commanded the III Army at Wissembourg, Wœrth, Sedan and during the Siege of Paris.

Heir to the German Empire

Friedrich III as Kronprinz, by Heinrich von Angeli, 1874

The German states united as the German Empire in 1871, with William as Emperor and Frederick as heir to the new German monarchy. Bismarck, now German Chancellor, disliked Frederick, and distrusted his and his wife's liberalism. Frederick was kept out of any real position of power throughout his father's reign. Nobody expected that William, then 73, would reign until 1888. Frederick was left without responsibilities. He did do a lot of good establishing schools and churches in the area of Bornstaedt near Potsdam.^[17][18] Emperor William, seeking to raise Berlin, the capital, to a great cultural center, appointed Frederick as Protector of Public Museums. It was largely due to his work and that of William Bode, director of Berlin galleries, that considerable artistic collections were acquired. After his death, these collections were housed in the new Kaiser Friedrich Museum (later known as the Bode Museum) in Berlin.^[19] Frederick continued his military and representational duties when required, such as attending Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887. "For a while Fritz's life was little more than a chronicle of foundation stone laying, traveling to weddings and celebrations in all corners of the continent and family visits to his wife's relations in England or alternatively to her sister Alice at the humble palace in Darmstadt."^[20] One highlight during this period was the happy celebration of his silver (25th) wedding anniversary on January 25, 1883.

Illness and brief reign

Circa 1876

By the time his father died aged 90 on March 9, 1888, Frederick had developed a debilitating cancer of the larynx,^[21] which was finally diagnosed on November 12, 1887 by the British doctor Sir Morell Mackenzie. On learning of his illness Frederick said, "To think I should have such a horrid disgusting illness ... I had so hoped to have been of use to my country."^[22] Due to a rivalry between the local German doctors and the British doctors favored by Frederick and his wife, difficulties occurred over the proposed treatment of the patient.^[23] Doctor Bergman, a German, proposed to remove the larynx completely. His German colleague, Dr. Virchow, disagreed.^[24] Such an operation had never been successfully performed without the death of the patient.^[25] Therefore both the Emperor and Empress naturally preferred the treatment suggested by Mackenzie. A cannula was fitted on February 8 to allow the Emperor to breathe.^[26] This operation is called a tracheotomy. Frederick had difficulty speaking for the remainder of his life, and often communicated through writing. Dr. Bergman almost killed the Emperor by missing the incision in the windpipe and forcing the cannula into the wrong place. This caused the Emperor to cough and cough, and streams of blood appeared. Bergman then proceeded to place his forefinger into the wound to enlarge it. The bleeding only subsided after two hours. The Emperor wrote, "Why did Bergman put his finger in my throat?"^[26] and later, "Bergman ill-treated me".^[26] Bergman's interference resulted in an abscess in the patient's neck creating pus which made the condition more serious.^[26] Years later, Bergman tried to prove to his medical students that he could have saved Frederick III by removing his larynx. He attempted that operation, but his patient died under the knife.^[27][28][29]

In spite of his illness, the Emperor was determined to fulfill his obligations as Emperor. Minutes after writing out the announcement of his accession, he took the ribbon and star of his own Order of the Black Eagle from his jacket and pinned it on the dress of his wife. He was determined, though gravely ill, to honor the position of his wife as Empress.^[30] He also managed to receive Queen Victoria and the Swedish King and to attend the wedding of his son Prince Henry to his niece Princess Irene. Frederick III ruled for only 99 days.^[31] Tragically he was unable to realize his plans. He did however force Robert von Puttkammer to resign on June 8 when evidence appeared that Puttkammer had interfered in the Reichstag elections.^[32] Dr. Mackenzie wrote of the Emperor that he had "an almost overwhelming sense of the duties of his position."^[33] Writing to Lord Napier, the new Empress Victoria wrote of her husband, "The trial laid upon us is a very heavy one ... and it is not easy to meet it with all the courage and the energy necessary... One tries to keep a stout heart, and hopes on, that things might improve! The Emperor is able to attend to his business, and do a great deal, but not being able to speak is, of course, most trying."^[34] Finally on June 15, Frederick III died and was succeeded by his 29-year-old son Wilhelm II. He is buried in a mausoleum attached to the Friedenskirche (Peace Church) in Potsdam.

Legacy

Many historians have considered Frederick's early death particularly tragic, not only for himself but also for the German nation, and later the whole world. Frederick III was a liberal and a great admirer of the British constitution. Given a longer reign, it is possible he would have moved Germany towards a more liberal democratic course.^[31] His father lived over 90 years and reigned for 27 years, making Frederick not able to rule for longer than expected. Great hopes were set on him. Opponents of the theory that Frederick would have liberalized Germany criticize his early life for complying with the policies of Bismarck and his father without giving stronger opposition, as well as continuing his family's strong military tradition. Frederick and Victoria were great admirers of Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. They planned to rule as consorts, like Albert and Queen Victoria, and they planned to reform the fatal flaws in the executive branch that Bismarck had created for himself. The office of Chancellor responsible to the Kaiser would be replaced with a British-style cabinet, with ministers responsible to the Reichstag. Government policy would be based on the consensus of the cabinet. Bismarck placed informers in the household of the royal couple and undermined them by planting defaming stories in newspapers, some of which accused them of acting as British agents by revealing state secrets to the British government. Perhaps Frederick III realised what would happen after his death. He said in May 1888, "I cannot die ... What would happen to Germany?"^[35]

He tried to raise his children to share his liberal ideals. But when William II, his son and successor, was a teenager, Bismarck separated him from his parents and placed him under his own tutelage. Bismarck planned to use William as a weapon against his parents in order to retain his own power. Bismarck drilled William on his prerogatives and taught him to be insubordinate to his parents. Consequently, William II developed a dysfunctional relationship with his father and especially with his English mother. However, Bismarck would become the first victim of his own creation when he lost favor with William II. When he realized that his dismissal was imminent:

All Bismarck’s resources were deployed; he even asked Empress Frederick to use her influence with her son on his behalf. But the wizard had lost his magic; his spells were powerless because they were exerted on people who did not respect them, and he who had so signally disregarded Kant’s command to use people as ends in themselves had too small a stock of loyalty to draw on. As Lord Salisbury told Queen Victoria: 'The very qualities which Bismarck fostered in the Emperor in order to strengthen himself when the Emperor Frederick should come to the throne have been the qualities by which he has been overthrown.' The Empress, with what must have been a mixture of pity and triumph, told him that her influence with her son could not save him for he himself had destroyed it.^[36]

William II's erratic meddling in government and international affairs and his poor choice of advisers contributed to the outbreak of World War I, to the demise of the German Empire, and to the end of monarchy in Germany.

Unlike his son, Frederick had served as an able military leader in several wars, and thus knew the cruelties firsthand. His other children were not all militaristic. His daughter Sophie brought many liberal qualities as Queen Consort of Greece, undertaking many humanitarian and educational projects. Another daughter, Margaret, also held liberal viewpoints and greatly admired both her parents. In 1918 her husband Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse was elected constitutional King of Finland. This would have made the Princess Queen Consort. They declined the offer.

Ancestry

Issue

See also

• Rulers of Germany family tree. He was related to every other ruler of Germany.

Notes

References

• Balfour, Michael (1964). The Kaiser and his Times. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. OCLC 807459. 
• Corti, Egon (1957). The English Empress: A Study in the Relations Between Queen Victoria and her Eldest Daughter, Empress Frederick of Germany. London: Cassell. OCLC 60222037. 
• Judd, Denis (1976). Eclipse of Kings: European Monarchies in the Twentieth Century. New York: Stein and Day. ISBN 0 8128 2064 1. OCLC 2074280. 
• Kitchen, Martin (1996). Cambridge Illustrated History of Germany. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521794329. OCLC 46909896. 
• Macdonagh, Giles (2000). The Last Kaiser: William the Impetuous. London: Phoenix. ISBN 1 84212 478 1. OCLC 59550468. 
• Mueller-Bohn, Hermann (1900). Kaiser Friedrich der gütige: vaterländisches ehrenbuch (in German). Berlin: Verlag Von Paul Kittel. OCLC 11475860. 
• Pakula, Hannah (1998). An Uncommon Woman - The Empress Frederick: Daughter of Queen Victoria, Wife of the Crown Prince of Prussia, Mother of Kaiser Wilhelm. London: Phoenix Giants. ISBN 1 85799 853 7. OCLC 59592048. 
• Sinclair, Andrew (1981). The Other Victoria: The Princess Royal and the Grand Game of Europe. London: Weidenfeld and Nicholson. ISBN 0 297 779887 7. OCLC 8845833. 
• Van der Kiste, John (1981). Frederick III: German Emperor 1888. Gloucester: Alan Sutton. ISBN 0 904387 77 1. OCLC 10605825. 

External links

• Kaiser Friedrich III (German)
• AN IMPERIAL TRAGEDY: Frederick III and the Letters of the Empress - on-line article about the illness and death of Frederick III

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House of Hohenzollern William I (1871-1888) · Frederick III (1888) · William II (1888-1918)
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