For centuries there were separate German principalities, grand duchies, and cities, and they were finally unified as Germany under the royal house of Hohenzollern, members of which had ruled Prussia for centuries. From the Great Elector Frederick William of Brandenberg to Emperor William II of Germany, the House of Hohenzollern worked to increase Prussia’s power and unify the German states into a united, forceful country in Europe.
Great Elector Frederick William (r. 1640–1688)
When Frederick William of Hohenzollern (1620–1688) came to power as the Great Elector of Brandenburg, Brandenburg was the heart of power in Prussia. In the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, the area of Brandenburg-Prussia was given lands in central Germany, beginning Prussia’s expansion in land and power. Great Elector Frederick William was an absolutist monarch and worked to make Prussia a military state, which served it well over the next few centuries of territorial expansion.
King Frederick I in Prussia (r. 1701–1713)
Frederick William’s son Frederick (1657–1713) established Prussia as an important center for science and art. In 1701, he adopted the title “King in Prussia” as King Frederick I in Prussia.
King Frederick William I in Prussia (r. 1713–1740)
King Frederick I's son King Frederick William I in Prussia (1688–1740) was a cruel man, particularly to his son. He is known for having collected freakishly tall men to be soldiers in his army.
King Frederick II of Prussia, King Frederick the Great (r. 1740–1786)
King Frederick William I’s son King Frederick II of Prussia (1712–1786) is also known as King Frederick the Great of Prussia because of his brilliance and absolute devotion to Prussian self-interest. He was a cultured man, a friend of Voltaire and a talented musician. He was also a brilliant soldier who expanded the Prussian army and achieved many military victories, including taking the Austrian duchy of Silesia during the War of Austrian Succession. In 1772, he changed his own title from “King in Prussia” to “King of Prussia” to reflect the monarchy’s growing power and importance in Prussia.
King Frederick William II (r. 1786–1797)
King Frederick the Great’s nephew succeeded him as King Frederick William II (1744–1979). He was a relatively weak king by Hohenzollern standards, but he still managed to destroy Poland with the help of Russia. But he also tried to make peace with Napoleon, as he could tell that France was growing in power against Prussia.
King Frederick William III (r. 1797–1840)
King Frederick William II’s son King Frederick William III (1770–1840) dealt with both the destruction of the Napoleonic Wars and rebuilding Prussia afterward. In 1806, Napoleon destroyed the Prussian Army and marched into Berlin, destroying the city. After Napoleon was defeated, King Frederick William III oversaw the rebuilding of Berlin to be an even greater city than it had been before. He was also in power during the establishment of the German Confederation of 1815, which consisted of thirty-nine independent states including Prussia.
King Frederick William IV (r. 1840–1861)
King Frederick William III’s son King Frederick William IV (1795–1861) was early in his reign a relatively liberal ruler. However, after all of the revolutions of 1848 he became reactionary and conservative, bringing Prussia further down the militaristic road the Hohenzollerns had always kept it on.
Emperor William I (r. 1861–1888)
King Frederick William IV’s brother King William I (1797–1888) was also a very conservative, reactionary ruler. He appointed Count Otto von Bismarck as chancellor, under whom Prussia’s military was strengthened. Bismarck engineered the Franco-Prussian War that unified Germany, and in 1871 William I became emperor, or Kaiser, of Germany. Prussia led the new unified country, which consisted of three other kingdoms, six grand duchies, four duchies, seven principalities, and four independent cities. Under Emperor William I, Germany became a militaristic, authoritarian state.
Emperor Frederick III (r. 1888)
Emperor William I’s son Emperor Frederick III (1831–1888) was far more liberal than his father and wanted to implement some modern changes in Germany. However, throat cancer killed him three months after he ascended the throne, so his reign had no lasting effect on Germany.
Emperor William II (r. 1888–1918)
Emperor Frederick III’s son Emperor William II (1859–1941), often known as Kaiser Wilhelm II, took after his grandfather and was militaristically conservative. He dismissed Bismarck in 1890 because the chancellor thought the new Kaiser was impetuous and immature. Unfortunately, Bismarck was the only one who could really control the complex governing of Germany. Nevertheless, Germany was a powerful country in 1914 when it joined the Austro-Hungarian Empire in World War I. After losing the war, however, Emperor William II was forced to abdicate in November 1918. He went into exile in Doorn in the Netherlands. Emperor William II was the last Hohenzollern ruler of Prussia/Germany, and with him ended over two hundred years of royal Prussian hegemony.
Sources:
Opfell, Olga S. Royalty Who Wait: The 21 Formerly Regnant Houses of Europe. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2001.
Packard, Jerrold M. Victoria’s Daughters. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
