How Did Prussia Become a Great Power? | Frederick the Great & Enlightened Despotism

From humble beginnings, the Kingdom of Prussia came to be synonymous with military might. Voltaire called it "the army with a state." Prussia's rise began with the union of Brandenburg and Ducal Prussia in 1618, but it didn't become a Great Power until over a century later. Under Frederick the Great, Prussia ballooned in size, but far from being a common warlord, 'Der alte Fritz' was a man of the Enlightenment who brought Prussia into the modern age.

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Sources Consulted:
Miller, Stuart T. Mastering Modern European History. London: Macmillan Education LTD, 1990.

Lentin, Tony & Frederick II. Units 15-16 Frederick the Great, Letters and Documents. Milton Keynes: The Open University Press, 1979.

[Veriox]

the rise of prussia really was a miracle. from a vassal to poland and a desolate swamp, to the unifier of germany. very well made video.

[Gorboduc]

Frederick's balance between "enlightened" and "despot" is best illustrated by his attitude to freedom of speech:

"My people and I have come to an agreement which satisfies us both. They are to say what they please, and I am to do what I please."

[Bln-fu]

The Prussian kings truly managed to build breathtaking cities. Potsdam is an expression of local styles, with French and Italian palaces and villas, Romanesque city planing, as well as Russian- and Dutch architecture. One cannot help but be overwhelmed by the awe-inspiring beauty of this city.

[luckyluciano]

You should make a video about how the Dutch survived the Holland war

[JaydenNunez_]

3:53 - his conquest of Silesia during the war was probably his most impactful military victory. 4:25 - concluding the treaty with Maria Theresa that saw Silesia ceded to him in 1742. 4:39 - 1741, the 1745 battles of Hohenfriedberg and Soor proved the power of Frederick’s cold analytical style of leadership. 5:08 - Acquiring Silesia was a game changer. It was the largest expansion made by the Hohenzollern dynasty to that point, increasing Frederick’s subjects by 50% and his state revenue by a third.

[samdaman]

This is amazing. I'm still suprised you have less subs than you should. You clearly take time when it comes to these videos and focus on knowledge to teach others what you know. Keep up these videos. They are amazing.

[zoomerboomer]

Yt Historian about Bismarck:"A disciple of Fredicks school of cold pragmatism"
Meanwhile Bismarck:"I'M THROWING MYSELF OUT OF THE WINDOW IF I DON'T GET MY WAY"

[juliusvillalon]

Frederick the great is the real life Gustavo Fring

[garvjuice]

finallly someone explains this, i have been tryna find a video like this

[WhompWhomp-ee]

i love your work keep doing this great job btw video idea :what was the opinion of britain to monarchies becoming republics (or the monarchs of britain)

[anti-spiral]

Great video, I hope you rise and collaborate with other youtubers!

[Kackpuh]

"He ran the kingdom well enough, though." Possibly the greatest understatement of the century. Friedrich Wilhelm I. pretty much built Prussia and laid all the foundations of it. As well as building upon those. Friedrich II. mostly just used what his father provided, even though he used it well.

[thelvadam]

thank you for making this Video !

Frederick the great / Friedrich Der Große, is often very much underrated, with Prussia rose to great power status, and that is what made it even possible to at the end unify Germany in the long run.

[Kackpuh]

One further correction: Friedrich II didn't see himself as "personification of the state", that would be other absolute monarchs, he saw himself as the first servant of his state, appointed to this position by God (yes, you still can see his deep religiousness). The difference wasn't the "God" part but the "who is here to serve whom" part.

[CliffCardi]

When a Prussia Fanboy suddenly becomes the Russian Czar just when your army is about to collapse on 3 fronts

[tahamuhammad]

Napoleon was Corsican
Hitler was Austrian
Stalin was Georgian
See a pattern?

[axelven]

U should do a video on Tuetons and livnonians and Kazkhstan

[emilianohermosilla]

Look back history’s always so great! Hahah

[djinnglebells]

2:40 “possible lover” tbh probably lover is more accurate. You can joke about how gay Fred G was but a lot of the things we’d call gay today were aristocratic standard then. The only thing we can say was out of the norm was he liked hot dogs more than hamburgers, at least judging by stories of how he interacted w/ his wife.

[achour.falestine]

0:17
bro really deleted the ottomans out of the map