King in Prussia
King Wilhelm I was crowned in 1861 as King in Prussia, prior to the establishment of the German Empire (1871). He was crowned with great pomp, becoming the first king to be crowned in Prussia since the coronation of King Friedrich I in 1701, although a significant number of politicians opposed the idea. Wilhelm I took the crown with his own hands from the altar and crowned himself, while saying that he was receiving the crown from God's hands. These words were intended as a warning to Prussian Constitutionalists and Liberals.