OTD 14 August 1688 Frederick William I of Prussia

-
On August 14th. 1688 a brilliant boy was born in Berlin. He had the name:
Frederick William (in German: Friedrich Wilhelm).


Frederick William I of Prussia - Source picture: Wikipedia


His parents were Frederick I of Prussia and Sophia Charlotte of Hanover.

On November 28th. 1706 he married his first cousin Sophia Dorothea of 
Hanover (daughter of King George I of Great Britain). They had 14 children.

This time I won't tell more about their marriage but about his rather special
reign. In 1713 Frederick William became King of Prussia and Elector of 
Brandenburg and he really took his tasks seriously. He imposed strict rules
for officials and described their jobs clearly. 

When a minister wasn't present at a meeting the King didn't pay his salary.

Already in 1717 King Frederick William I introduced mandatory schooling,
and the taxes were reformed.

He lived very sober and didn't spend much of money except for the Prussian
army.

King Frederick William I didn't like musicians, scientists and intellectuals. 
He hated everything French but admired The Netherlands (which was then
a republic).

King Frederick William I died on May 31st. 1740 in Berlin. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Who is who? de Liedekerke family!

-
Image
Only a few noble families are intertwined with the history of  a country.  The de Liedekerke family has it all: a long and interesting history and close ties to the rules of their country.  Let's take a closer look!  History It was in 1301 that the history of the family de Liedekerke started.  Then Knight Raas of Herzele signed an official document in Beveren. His son was Raas of Herzele of (de) Liedekerke. His descendants called themselves de Liedekerke.  But there were many interesting people in the family de Liedekerke. connections with the Duke of Burgundy Raas of Liedekerke, lord of Nieuwerkerken (+/- 1421 - 1494/1495) was married to a certain Johanna. Due to his marriage he became Lord of Heestert and Zulte. In 1476 he went on a military campaign with Charles the Bold. Duke of Burgundy. In 1477, Mary of Burgundy, appointed him as bailiff of Aalst and Geraardsbergen.  Charles the Bold Mary of Burgundy Connections with the House of Habsburg Steven of Liedekerke (+/- 1457 - 1530
Read more

House of Wittelsbach - Between crazyness and excellence

-
Image
Plate with the coat of arms of Bavaria, Germany own picture taken in Munich With this blog post about the House of Wittelsbach I take you on a trip to Bavaria (Bayern) in Germany. Since 1996, the royal family's head is: Franz, Duke of Bavaria. So far is the situation nowadays but this royal familie has a very nice history. Own picture taken of the Coat of Arms of Bavaria The House of Wittelsbach: the origin Otto II, Count of Scheyern (who died on 31 October 1120) could acquire the castle of Wittelsbach near Aichach. Later the Counts of Scheyern left the castle in 1119 for Wittelsbach Castle and the former was given to monks to establish Scheyern Abbey. From 1180 till 1918 the Wittelsbach dynasty ruled several German territories in Bavaria and the Electorate of the Palatinate (till 1805). In 1329 under the Treaty of Pavia, the House of Wittelsbach split in two branches. Emperor Louis IV granted the Palatinate including the Bavarian Upper Palatinate t
Read more

Who was Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan?

-
Image
On 14 May 2022 Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan passed away at the age of 73. Family Khalifa was born on 7 September 1948 at Qasr Al-Muwaiji, Al Ain, in Abu Dhabi (then part of the Trucial States), the eldest son of Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Hassa bint Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Education   He was a graduate of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Crown Prince When his father, Zayed, became Emir of Abu Dhabi in 1966, Khalifa was appointed the Ruler's Representative in the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi and Head of the Courts Department in Al Ain. Zayed was the Ruler's Representative in the Eastern Region before he became the Emir of Abu Dhabi. A few months later the position was handed to Tahnoun bin Mohammed Al Nahyan. On 1 February 1969, Khalifa was nominated the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, and on the next day he was appointed Head of the Abu Dhabi Department of Defense. In that post, he oversaw the build up of the Abu Dhabi Defense Force, which after 1971
Read more