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Frederick the Great discussion post 9
...I leave you guys alone for one weekend and it's time for a new Fritz post, lol!
I'm gonna reply to the previous post comments but I guess new letter-reading, etc. should go in this one :)
Frederick the Great links
I'm gonna reply to the previous post comments but I guess new letter-reading, etc. should go in this one :)
Frederick the Great links
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
What do you mean?
I mean that I feel like if each entry got its own part of the timeline, it would become very large and invite expansion. Here's a sample of what I think would rapidly become very unwieldy:
31 May 1740 FW dies, age 51
1 Jun 1740 [I know this isn't right but I can't easily find the date reference] Friedrich is crowned King Friedrich II in Prussia
Sept 1740 Fritz's anti-Machiavel pamphlet is published, thus leading Voltaire to exclaim [whatever it was he said about how Fritz was the greatest]
I propose instead what I said above, a single entry for the entire year:
1740: Friedrich Wilhelm dies 31 May. Fritz is crowned King Friedrich II in Prussia [whenever he got crowned]. His Anti-Machiavel pamphlet decrying invasion is published in September. Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, dies 20 October (Maria Theresia succeeds him but is not recognized at the time as Empress). Fritz invades the Austrian province of Silesia in December, starting the War of the Austrian Succession.
It may be a little harder to read individual entries than the first way but I think it has the virtues of not being quite as overwhelming overall and making the entire timeline a little easier to scan through.
Hmm, OK, I may check the Blanning out! After I finish all my current reading, lol. I will go back to Wilhelmine but I've sort of slewed over to the AW letters for now :P :)
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
That's because he was never crowned! He went for cheap homage ceremonies, appeared in public, waved at people, gave out some medals with his image on them, went home. FW had done the same. The last coronation in Prussia was the first King (in) Prussia, Grandpa F1, who was a big spender.
Coronations are expensive and decadent and (of concern to Fritz) not for enlightened, non-superstitious monarchs!
Okay, so you want fewer items but more detail per item than I was going to go for. I suppose that makes sense if it's meant as an introductory resource and not just a reference for the initiated.
I may also do a longer chronology with less detail per entry as a reference work for the initiated (who may also be plotting fic, haha).
Blanning is also a lighter read than a lot of the other biographers, in that it took me less time to read 600 pages by him than to read 300 pages by other biographers. So it's a good intro to the topic for that reason as well. It's also ten bucks.
I will go back to Wilhelmine but I've sort of slewed over to the AW letters for now :P :)
There's a lot to read! I've started like ten things that I haven't finished. (I have a Trello list for them, lol.) Plus I'm about to finish rereading MacDonogh, and then I want to reread Blanning, with all this new knowledge under my belt.
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
Relatedly, is there a good, non-overly aggrandising book or resource as to Fritz’s military strategy? I’m only familiar with the standard myth of the war genius general, mostly from Berlin visits and familiarity with the post-Fritz Napoleonic wars, albeit from the non-Prussian side of things (thanks, Mis fandom!). I see you’ve recommended Blanning to cahn, which probably means I should wait for her to be done with it and make free with her summarised views :)
(I’m also interested in resources on the Prussian military uniform, but that’s probably just my thing for uniforms.)
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
I similarly have Frederick the Great: The Uniforms of the Prussian Army under Frederick the Great 1740 to 1786 on my list of books to ILL on some future date, since I can't find it cheaply enough to buy. Or at least couldn't last time I looked.
Prussian military uniforms
Cavalry
Infantry
Special tasks not covered by the above:
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
Oh, yeah, I totally support making two chronologies: a beginner's chronology specifically for introductory purposes, and one with lots of entries, for reference (which, yeah, I would also find REALLY helpful when reading these letters, for one thing). And yay fic-writing :D
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
Re: Rheinsberg, the community
(omg, I got a chronology joke, what have you guys DONE to me)
Re: Rheinsberg, the community