 {|align=right | |- | |} frederick william ii (; 25 september 1744 â 16 november 1797) was king of prussia, from 1786 until his death. he was in personal union the prince-elector of brandenburg and the sovereign prince of the principality of neuchÃ¢tel. pleasure-loving and indolent, he is seen as the antithesis to his predecessor, frederick ii. under his reign, prussia was weakened internally and externally, and he failed to deal adequately with the challenges to the existing order posed by the french revolution. his religious policies were directed against the enlightenment and aimed at restoring a traditional protestantism. however, he was a patron of the arts and responsible for the construction of some notable buildings, among them the brandenburger tor in berlin. ==early life== frederick william was born in berlin, the son of prince augustus william of prussia (the second son of king frederick william&nbsp;i of prussia) and of louise amalie of brunswick-lÃ¼neburg. his mother's elder sister, elisabeth, was the wife of augustus william's brother king frederick&nbsp;ii ("frederick the great"). frederick william became [[h
1744_births 1797_deaths 18th-century_German_people Burials_at_Berlin_Cathedral Electors_of_Brandenburg German_Calvinist_and_Reformed_Christians Honorary_Members_of_the_St_Petersburg_Academy_of_Sciences House_of_Hohenzollern Kings_of_Prussia People_from_Berlin People_of_the_Patriottentijd Princes_of_NeuchAC/tel Protestant_monarchs Prussian_people_of_the_KoAciuszko_Uprising Recipients_of_the_Order_of_St._Andrew Recipients_of_the_Order_of_the_Black_Eagle Rosicrucians