Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-08-11

dntlsm, acquired new territory in central
Germany and united Brandenburg and
russia into duchy he laid the broad
foundations for the future greatness of
his family. That was in 1918 The storm
or the thirtyyear war was even then
about to break, and during that long
struggle the Hohenzollern duchy was
more prominent as sufferer than as an
acuVe participant. The Elector George
William who died in 1910, left to his
successor barren desert inhabited by a
rev miserable starvelings who had in
some manner escaped the devastation of
mat terrible war. That successor was
Frederick William, who ruled for forty
elght years and who is known in his
tory as the great elector." He was the
grandfather of modern Germany
Inc. great elector established the first
standing army in central Europe He
gained complete sovereignty over Prussia
and consolidated it with Brandenburs
and his other minor possessions in per
manent union. He forced the neighboring
states of France. Holland ard Sweden to
respect his sovereignty and to regard the
boundaries of his governmental estate
When he died in 1888 he left to his son a
country having a million and a half peo-
|'pie, great deal of treasure and stand
ing army OF 5000 we'll drilled soldiers
January Is, 17O1. the son of the great
/
erick l, first King of
assumes crown Prussia. He made
=. E..llr few efforts to add to
- the territory or pres
tige of his crown. but his successor, Fred
erick William l, acquired great wealth,
purchased much territory and added part
of Pomerania to the kingdom The third
King of Prussia came to the throne in
10 ~;.l.
Frederick the Great. He found a state
of less than 5000 square miles. with
population of two and a half million, and
when he died, forty-six years later, he
left a Prussia having $4,000 square miles
and population Of nearly six million
people. His conquests were continued by
his son, Frederick William II, who reigned
from 1885 to 1897, anG who brought Prus-
STA up to an area Of 10000 square miles
and to population of more than nine
million.
Frederick William III came to the
throne in 1897. Nine years later his king
dom was laid waste by Napoleon, and
half of his territory and population was
taken. After the fall of the Napoleonic
empire the congress of Vienna restored
this loss and added to Prussia a part of
SaXony, the Rhineland and Swedish Pom
erania, making of Prussia two separate
pieces of territory aggregating about 1oI,-
600 square miles.
In the latter years of the reign of
Frederick William ILL., who died in 1910,
and all during the reign of Frederick Will
liam ", from 1S40 to 1861, the Prussan
kingdom devoted itself to the perfection
of it's army: the training and education
of it's young men, both for war and
work, and aimed steadily and singly at
gaining the supremacy of the German
world. William l came TO the throne as
King of Prussia in 1861. He had under
In ornk nd N
Prussia fought the victorious seven
weeks war with Austria, gained COM
pete supremacy among the German
states; absorbed Hanover. Hesse, Nassau,
Frankfort and Schleswig- H olstein form
ed the north German confederation: ex-
cluded Austria from the Germanic family
council, and made of the kingdom of
Prussia a compact state of 1S4, 463 square
miles, having population Of 23,OO0,OOO
people.