Frederick William (rulers)
Frederick William, the name of four kings of Prussia.
Frederick William I(1688–1740) ruled 1713–40. He succeeded his father, Frederick I. Fortunately for Prussia, which was deeply in debt, Frederick William had frugal tastes, a stern will, and high administrative ability. He put the country's finances in order and during his reign he filled the treasury. In 1715 he led a campaign that won Pomerania from Sweden. Under him, the size of the army more than doubled, making Prussia the third largest military power in Europe. He supported Emperor Charles VI with troops in the War of the Polish Succession (1734–35). Prussian industry flourished under Frederick William's foreign trade policies. His administrative reforms made the nation strong. His son, Frederick the Great, succeeded him.
Frederick William II(1744–1797) ruled 1786–97, as successor to his uncle, Frederick the Great. He was a weak king and showed poor judgment in most matters. The second and third partitions of Poland gained territory for Prussia, but involvement in the French Revolutionary Wars left the country bankrupt.
Frederick William III(1770–1840), son of Frederick William II, ruled 1797–1840. He was an ineffectual monarch. Prussia was crushed by Napoleon and in the Peace of Tilsit (1807), it lost extensive territory. Then, capable leaders came to the fore and began reorganizing the army. Prussian troops helped defeat Napoleon and the country won much new territory. ( Frederick William joined in a league, called the Holy Alliance, with Russia and Austria. ( At home, he promised his people a constitution, but avoided taking action. In 1834 he formed the Zollverein, a customs union with other German states. (
Frederick William IV(1795–1861) succeeded his father, Frederick William III, in 1840. He believed in the divine right of kings, but after ending some repressive practices early in his reign was looked upon as being a liberal monarch. During the Revolution of 1848, he consented to the establishment in Prussia of a constitutional monarchy. Frederick William soon reversed himself, and when the Parliament of Frankfurt (a meeting of liberal revolutionaries) offered him the imperial crown of a proposed united Germany (1849), he rejected it. During the 1850's he reestablished repressive rule.
Frederick William engaged Prussia in a war with Denmark over Schleswig-Holstein, 1848–50, which ended in a Danish victory. He attempted to unify Germany under Prussian rule in 1850, but was thwarted by Austria. During the late 1850's he suffered increasing mental instability, and his brother William became regent in 1858 and ruled on his behalf.