#frederick i

Royal Birthdays for today, April 28th:

Otho, Emperor of Rome, 32

Edward IV, King of England, 1442

Magdalena Sibylla of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Württemberg, 1652

Frederick I, King of Sweden, 1676

Auguste of Bavaria, Archduchess of Austria, 1875

'Mamohato Bereng Seeiso, Queen of Lesotho, 1941

Lady Helen Taylor, Daughter of Prince Edward-Duke of Kent, 1964

Friedrich I (r. 1688 - 1713)

First King in Prussia

Much to our eternal chagrin, it was through dealings with Austria that our kingdom came to be. Tensions rose between Habsburgs and Bourbons again, this time over the issue of the successor to the Spanish throne. After much hemming and hawing, Friedrich decided to back the Habsburgs with a contingent of troops. In return for this most generous of favors, the Habsburgs finally acknowledging our king's rightful title over Prussia. As it had always been; never you mind what certain Polish authorities say!

Fittingly for Prussia's first king, Friedrich through the coronation of a lifetime in Königsberg. While the festivities aren't worth remarking upon - if you've seen one coronation, you've seen them all - the economic toll was staggering. A special tax was levied to pay for the ceremony and it only brought in a meagre 500,000 thalers. Friedrich designed every moment and detail of the ceremony, befitting a king of his frivolous talents. It was choked full of symbolism, such as crowning himself in a separate ceremony that snubbed the Estates. This flair for the dramatic continued throughout his reign, though lacking much of the follow through of his two predecessors.

Curiously, he was by all accounts a good father to his son, Friedrich Wilhelm I. Hoping to avoid the pitfalls of his own happy and uncertain childhood, Friedrich provided his son with a full education and a quasi-independent existence. This warm relationship extended even to the later years of the father's life, where they served as co-regents due to Friedrich's diminishing capacities. It leads one to wonder where Friedrich Wilhelm developed his barbaric notions on childrearing, but I am not one to speculate. (Note: Since when? -L)

Friedrich Wilhelm II (r. 1786 - 1797)

Friedrich Wilhelm's lack of interest and education in governing made him reliant on a coterie of ministers and advisors. The most significant of these, Johann Christoph Wöllner, dedicated himself to cultural policies that aimed to eliminate skepticism's corrupting influences on public life and uphold Christian doctrine. A bevy of laws were passed aimed at censorship and school curriculums. Our modern readership should feel assured that those sorts of things are now relegated to the past. (Note: Maintain the fourth wall! -L)

While dear Friedrich der Grosse deserves the credit for the first partition, it was Friedrich Wilhelm who finished the work of his predecessor. It was through his cunning - and Catherine the Great's generosity - that we received many fine cities, the best of all being Danzig. His brilliance, or that of a fine minister, also led us into a closer embrace with our dearly beloathed Austria. It was this treaty that fertilized the garden of our love - and our mutual hatred of France.

Barbarossa's awakening by Hermann Wislicenus

Ms. Codex 289 - Historia de Papa Allexandro et Phridrico Barba Rossa

This manuscript features an account of Pope Alexander III and Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa). It should be a copy of the original found in the Venetian chancellery archives by a secretary and presented to the Doge, Francesco Dona; the copy was made at the request of Pietro Morro. It was possibly written in Venice between 1525 and 1575 CE.