Frederick the Great, Discussion Post 19

[cahn]

Yuletide nominations:

18th Century CE Federician RPF
Maria Theresia | Maria Theresa of Austria
Voltaire
Friedrich II von Preußen | Frederick the Great
Ernst Ahasverus von Lehndorff
Friedrich Heinrich Ludwig von Preußen | Henry of Prussia (1726-1802)
Wilhelmine von Preußen | Wilhelmine of Prussia (1709-1758)
Anna Amalie von Preußen | Anna Amalia of Prussia (1723-1787)
Catherine II of Russia
Hans Hermann von Katte
Peter Karl Christoph von Keith
Michael Gabriel Fredersdorf
August Wilhelm von Preußen | Augustus William of Prussia (1722-1758)

Circle of Voltaire RPF
Emilie du Chatelet
Jeanne Antoinette Poisson (Madame de Pompadour)
John Hervey (1696-1743)
Marie Louise Mignot Denis
Lady Mary Wortley-Montagu
Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis
Armand de Vignerot du Plessis de Richelieu (1696-1788)
Francesco Algarotti

Comments

Re: Stratemann - Küstrin poetry

[selenak]

Okay, then Geheimer Kriegs- und Domänenrat Wilke is our (hobby)poet giving the future author of De La Literature Allemande a welome poem. :) Seriously though, it was a sweet gesture, and Fritz evidently appreciated if he both tried to compose a French version and wrote a brief German reply. I’m also reminded of the Frankfurt an der Oder students organizing a musical presentation for Fritz (whether or not Fredersdorf was involved). What all this tells me is that Fritz loving music and poetry must have been known across the kingdom - since neither Wilke nor the students were court insiders -, and also that they evidently wanted to show their solidarity/ make his life a bit better despite living in a kingdom governed by absolute monarch FW. Kudos, I say.

Re: Stratemann - Küstrin poetry

[mildred_of_midgard]

Hard agree. This is why I said that Fritz experienced a lot of kindness when he was young, he just (almost) never experienced consistent kindness coupled with real power. He got intermittent interventions: his mother, Mosel (maybe), the Münchows, etc., but they were all severely limited.

But the random acts of kindness were definitely responsible for him not turning out worse than he did, so kudos to everyone who did their best in a sucky situation.