Historical Characters, Including Frederick the Great, Discussion Post 47

[cahn]

We haven't had a new post since before December 25, so obligatory Yuletide link to this hilarious story of Frederick the Great babysitting his bratty little brother, with bonus Fritz/Fredersdorf!

Comments

1764-1772 Foreign policy: Saxony

[mildred_of_midgard]

Saxony. Saxony exists, right? They're the glaring omission in this write-up, and there's a reason for that: in 1763, August III, Brühl, and August III's son and heir, Friedrich Christian, all die within about 10 weeks of each other: October 5, October 28, December 17.

This was just as Friedrich Christian was starting to implement an independent (anti-Brühl) policy and get Saxony back on its feet after the catastrophic Seven Years' War, when the smallpox got him. Freaking smallpox.

His son with Maria Antonia is a minor, so that leaves Saxony in a state of political disarray. Friedrich Christian has brothers, who try to play for the throne of Poland and other places (like the Duchy of Courland), but who don't have enough resources of their own or support from allies to get anything noteworthy done in terms of a Saxon foreign policy in the 1760s and 1770s.

Sadly, that means the Saxony installment of this write-up ends here. A couple more posts from me on miscellaneous topics, and that'll be it!

Re: 1764-1772 Foreign policy: Saxony

[selenak]

The Brühl biographers tend to think he lucked out with his death in as much as Friedrich Christian was bound to make him a scapegoat for the Seven Years War disaster, given someone needed to be and it couldn't be Fritz the winner.

Re: 1764-1772 Foreign policy: Saxony

[mildred_of_midgard]

I tend to agree with them. Friedrich Christian was already starting the process, though I believe that much like Moltke a few years later in a identical position, Brühl was found officially innocent of embezzlement? My memory is fuzzy, and I never finished either of his bios I started. Maybe when work calms down and I have time to practice German again, I can pick up some of the abandoned half-finished books on my list.

Anyway, if Friedrich Christian and Brühl had lived, I think Brühl's life would have continued getting worse.