18th-Century Characters, Including Frederick the Great, Discussion Post 36

[cahn]

Starting a couple of comments earlier than usual to mention there are a couple of new salon fics! These probably both need canon knowledge.

felis ficlets on siblings!

Siblings (541 words) by felisnocturna
Chapters: 2/2
Fandom: 18th Century CE RPF
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Friedrich II von Preußen | Frederick the Great, Michael Gabriel Fredersdorf, August Wilhelm von Preußen | Augustus William of Prussia (1722-1758), Wilhelmine von Preußen | Wilhelmine of Prussia (1709-1758)
Summary:

Three Fills for the 2022 Three Sentence Ficathon.

Chapter One: Protective Action / Babysitting at Rheinsberg (Frederick/Fredersdorf, William+Henry+Ferdinand)
Chapter Two: Here Be Lions (Wilhelmine)

Unsent Letters fic by me:

Letters for a Dead King (1981 words) by raspberryhunter
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: 18th Century CE RPF
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Friedrich II von Preußen | Frederick the Great & Friedrich Heinrich Ludwig von Preußen (1726-1802)
Characters: Friedrich Heinrich Ludwig von Preußen | Henry of Prussia (1726-1802)
Additional Tags: Epistolary, Love/Hate, Talking To Dead People, Canonical Character Death, Dysfunctional Family
Summary:

Just because one's king and brother is dead doesn't mean one has to stop writing to him.

Comments

Re: Algarotti tidbits

[selenak]

One dedicated book may be a polite gesture, two look like a one night stand! :)

Canonical proof of mixed feelings: on the one hand, there's Algarotti playing host for Wilhelmine when she's in Venice and praising Fritz a lot while at it. There's Algarotti greeting Fritz' initial streak of success in the 7 Years War (specifically the battle of Prague, I think) with the Caesar beating Pompey at Pharsalus. (Which must have felt really awkward with Fritz' first big defeat following none too much later.) On the other, one of the Lady Mary biographers, I forget which one, said he also wrote an MT ode just in case, and I still want that crack fic where Algarotti sends Fritz and MT by mistake the odes intended for the other.

Also, for what it's worth, there's the Marquis' d'Argens take as reported by Nicolai (and yours truly here): Algarotti, a very subtle man and very subtle politician, was pleased by Friedrich's company because the later was a King and a man of wit. The King held him in high regard and loved him very much for his good qualities; but Algarotti was more concerned with the esteem he gained by the King's friendship and did not love the King, which the later eventually realized.

Now, D'Argens with his insistence that he's the one True Intellectual Friend of Fritz who was into Fritz for Fritz and not for crude gain is hardly unbiased, and would also eventually leave Prussia. But at the same time, his being biased doesn't necessarily translate into him being entirely wrong. Fritz being emotionally exhausting and easier to love from afar seems to have been a conclusion shared by a lot of people.

Re: Algarotti tidbits

[cahn]

One dedicated book may be a polite gesture, two look like a one night stand! :)

LOLOLOLOL! Okay, I'm sold :D

and I still want that crack fic where Algarotti sends Fritz and MT by mistake the odes intended for the other.

YES PLEASE

Ah, thank you for the link back to d'Argens' take, and the explanation!

Fritz being emotionally exhausting and easier to love from afar seems to have been a conclusion shared by a lot of people.

Seems very legit!