great kings of prussia

Great Kings of Prussia


A great sovereign must know exactly what the strong and weak points of his country are. He must be well acquainted with its resources and the national commerce. The sovereign must perform his duties connected to his offices with care. Fredrick William II would say, he is “the principle servant of the state”; therefore, he must act unselfishly, honestly and with wisdom. “The sovereign stands to his people in the same relation in which the head stands to the body.” (Barker, p22)

Fredrick William I reined from 1713 to 1740. When he came to power Prussia was only broken territories, so his goal was to make Prussia a country. Four achievements marked his reign. He decreased the expenses of the court and strengthened his military to eighty thousand soldiers because he believed that the key to a country’s wealth was its military. Eighty percent of Prussia’s income was used to build up this military. Fredrick I be...