His son Frederick, who succeeded him, finding himself possessed of extensive dominions, and of no inconsiderable influence among the nations of Europe, and being besides fond of show and splendour, aspired to the regal dignity. For this purpose, he used every means to insinuate him self into the favour of the emperor, and at the suggestion of William III. king of Britain, joined with the emperor in an alliance against France. The object of his ambition was at length obtained on terms sufficiently liberal and honourable, and lie was crowned king at Konigsburg in January, 1701, under the name of Frederick 1. the emperor himself placing the crown on his head. Some of the terms on which this dignity was acquired were, 1st, That Frederick should not separate from the empire those por tions of his dominions which had formerly been dependent on it ; 2d, That in the emperor's presence he should not experience any marks of honour superior to those he had before enjoyed; but that his ministers at Vienna should be treated with the same distinction as those of other crowned heads; Sd, That Frederick should maintain at his own expense 6000 men in Italy, in case the emperor should be obliged to make war on account of the claim of the house of Bourbon to the throne of Spain, and that these troops should be continued there while the war lasted. Such were the most important of the terms on which Prussia was erected into a kingdom. Frederick showed himself not unworthy of the honours he attained. He was a pacific and patriotic prince, and exerted himself to improve the internal advantages, and to secure the stability of his possessions. He was succeeded, in 1713, by his son Frederick William, sometimes called Frederic II. a great statesman, and with dispositions decidedly military, though he never was engaged in actual hostilities. He devoted ,himself, however, to the augmentation of his army, already great, and to the discipline of the troops. The army was composed of the tallest men he could find in his own dominions, and lie did not scruple to violate national faith in picking up the subjects of other states to answer his purpose; a circumstance which was more than once the occasion of altercations, and almost of hostilities. Before his death the Prussian army was not only one of the most numerous, but the best disciplined and accoutred of any in Europe. This object he kept steadily in view, both from the inherent taste and tendency of his mind, and from the necessity of maintaining an attitude of prepara tion and of readiness to keep the house of Austria in awe, which was now regarded as the natural enemy and rival of Prussia. During Frederick William's time, though some misunderstanding took place, war never was declared be tween these powers; but from the state in which he left his army, and from the funds he accumulated, he put it in the power of his son to perform exploits not surpassed in number and in brilliancy in modern times.
His son, Frederick Il."'commonly and deservedly styled the Great, came to the throne in 1740. His mother was Sophia, daughter of George I. king of Great Britain. He was born on the 24th of January, 1712; and was entrusted in his infancy to the care of Madame de Rocoule, who spoke only in French ; a circumstance that has been re garded as the origin of his uncommon taste for that lan guage, and his dislike of the German, his native tongue. As he advanced in years he was put under more accom plished tutors, to whose instructions he uniformly paid the most marked attention ; but as his father's object was to inspire him with a love of military glory, and to teach him the art of war in all its departments, he made at first but comparatively little progress in science and literature. And, indeed, though a man of uncommon genius, and of very general attainments, his erudition was at best but limited, being acquainted, for instance, with the classical writers of antiquity chiefly through the medium of French translations. The branches in which he excelled were the belles lettres and moral science. He was also an adept in
music, and passionately fond of it ; an accomplishment which his father seems to have reckoned incompatible with the profession of a soldier, as he strictly forbade him to practise restriction which was the chief cause of that misunderstanding which obtained between them for several years previously to the death of Frederick William. In consequence of this misunderstanding, he retired to the castle of Rheinsberg, where he devoted his time to study, to the most refined and elegant amusements, and to the society and conversation of the learned from almost every country. When he ascended the throne in 1740, he was welcomed by the unanimous acclamations of his subjects, who entertained hopes of his future greatness and celebrity, which were not disappointed. Under the article FREDERICK Ill. in this work, we have given a full and minute account of the military achievements of this distinguish ed monarch ; and referring our readers to that article for farther information on this subject, we shall at pre sent state, in the most cursory and brief manner, only the most important transactions of his reign. In ac cordance with the uniform policy of his family, the early and great object of his life was to increase his dominions; and the first step he took in the accomplish ment of his wishes, was the invasion of Silesia on the death of the emperor of Germany. Disregarding the Pragmatic Sanction, by which all the powers of Europe had engaged to secure the emperor's hereditary claims to his eldest daughter, the Archduchess Maria Theresa, he took pos session of Silesia with an army of 30,000 men. And after reducing several cities, and defeating the Austrians at Molwitz, be entered Breslau the capital, and received the homage of the Silesians.'f This invasion of Silesia, though it could not be prevented, was not to he forgiven, and was one of the great causes of the hostility in which his future life was spent. At one time he entered the Austrian dominions, carrying devasta tion and victory along with him wherever he advanced. At another, his own territories were invaded, and even his capital was more than once in the hands of his enemies. And at one period, when Austria, France, Russia, Poland, and Saxony, had formed a coalition against him ; when at length the king of Sweden, his relation and ally, farmed a junction with his enemies ; when lie had lost his favourite brother, and some of his bravest generals ; when Memel had fallen into the hands of the Russians; when the French had seized the electorate of Hanover, (the hereditary dominions of his ally, the king of Great Britain,) and the Austrians were ravaging Silesia, and had obtained posses sion of his capital—in such desperate circumstances, courage and hope seemed to have forsaken him, and he even meditated self-murder—which, however, he was prevented from committing, by the affectionate and spirited remonstrances of the Marquis d'Argens, his most intimate favourite and friend. He was roused from despair ; he was animated to farther efforts ; and by his own personal abilities—the rapidity and wisdom of his movements— the courage and the discipline of his troops, aided and seconded by a large subsidy from Great Britain, he op posed a• force superior in numbers, and conducted with eminent talents ; and at length saw himself victorious over all his enemies. After seven years of uninterrupted war, in which, in addition to other calamities, upwards of 500,000 combatants had fallen in the field, peace was con cluded at Hubertsburgh in iFebruary, 1763, securing to him Silesia, but in other respects leaving affairs nearly in the same situation in which they were at the commence ment of this sanguinary struggle. And at the date just mentioned, Frederick, after an absence of six years, re turned to his capital amid the loudest acclamations o£ the inhabitants; and with a name for personal bravery, military skill, and unquenchable ardour, of which few examples are to be found in the history of the world.