The Great King: Frederick the Great of Prussia was born on 24 January 1712. The epitome of the philosopher king, he was a lover of the arts and reflection, a defender of justice who protected the poor and weak against the rich and powerful, and a builder and tireless administrator who turned the scattered and modest domains he inherited into one of the great powers of Europe. Frederick saw his office not as a privilege, but as a duty; he preferred his tattered military uniform to fine raiment, and worked every day from early morning until late in the night as naturally as other men breathe or drink water. Despising pomposity in all its forms, he never took himself for anything other than the first servant of the state. This king, who composed works for flute and conversed fluently in French with men of letters, was also one of historys great captains: Frederick was ranked by Napoleon (who was certainly in a position to know) as one of the seven greatest soldiers of history, the peer and equal of Alexander the Great, Hannibal and Caesar. His army was a well-drilled, precision machine that was only a fraction of the size of those fielded by his mighty enemies, yet through his prodigious intellectual capacities and force of will, he triumphed again and again when defeat was certain, and not without the aid of that other element that the aforementioned Napoleon counted as crucial to victory in battle: luck. In the darkest hours of the Seven Years War, he never lost hope, even as his enemies were eagerly negotiating the partition of his kingdom and arranging for his comfortable retirement in exile. “Brave king! Wait yet a little while, and the days of your suffering will be over. Already the sun of your good fortune stands behind the clouds, and soon will rise upon you.” The sun rose in 1762 with the death of the Tsarina Elizabeth, which brought about the turn of fortune called the Miracle of the House of Brandenburg. There were many such miracles in the history of this kingdom, but perhaps the greatest miracle of all was the birth of this Great King, whose eyes first opened upon the world on this day in 1712.
Posted on: Fri, 24 Jan 2014 15:40:37 +0000
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