August Wilhelm of Prussia (1722–1758)

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Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia
Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia, around 1740–1760
Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia

August Wilhelm von Prussia (born August 9, 1722 in Berlin , † June 12, 1758 in Oranienburg ) was Prince of Prussia and Prussian general.

Life

August Wilhelm was the eleventh child of King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia (1688–1740) from his marriage to Sophie Dorothea (1687–1757), daughter of King George I of Great Britain , and thus a younger brother of Frederick the Great . August Wilhelm was considered to be much more sociable than his brother and his father's favorite. At the time of the conflict with the Crown Prince, his father planned to make August Wilhelm Crown Prince.

In 1741 August Wilhelm was promoted to major general and took part in the First and Second Silesian Wars in this position . In the Seven Years' War August Wilhelm became General of the Infantry in 1756 and got into political contradictions with his brother when he was seeking rapprochement with England.

His first command of his own was the withdrawal of the Prussian troops after the Battle of Kolín . This operation was marked by military errors on both sides and culminated in the inadequate bombing of Zittau by Austrian troops. This led to the fact that his brother, the king, had to rush to his aid with his army from Silesia and immediately after the unification of the two armies in Bautzen rebuked him in sharp words and ungraciously dismissed him from his service. Less than a year later, Prince August Wilhelm died, broken in body and soul. His work Relationen über den Feldzug 1757 , published in 1769, damaged the reputation of Frederick II considerably.

It is undisputed that as commander of the army he was militarily responsible for the mistakes; However, whether he caused it due to his own misjudgments is at least questionable. Here is a quote from General Charles-Emmanuel de Warnery, who later also participated in the campaign :

"Our misfortune was that the Prince of Prussia, in order to walk all the more cautiously and surely, consulted the generals, whom he believed to have the most insight; had he followed his own thoughts, everything would have gone well. Because he understood the matter ten times better than all those to whom he turned. "

In memory of him and as a clear criticism of the king, his brother Heinrich had the Rheinsberg obelisk built.

Prince of Prussia

August Wilhelm married Luise Amalie (1722–1780), daughter of Duke Ferdinand Albrecht II of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel on January 6, 1742 in Berlin . His wife was the sister of Queen Elisabeth Christine von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, the wife of his royal brother. The marriage turned out to be unhappy and August Wilhelm asked his brother to separate the marriage so that he could marry the lady-in-waiting Sophie Marie von Pannwitz . This request put a considerable strain on the fraternal relationship.

In 1744 the childless Frederick II August Wilhelm appointed Prince of Prussia as the presumptive heir to the throne . This title was given to the Prussian prince who, in the absence of a crown prince, was entitled to inheritance according to Salian law . After August Wilhelm's early death, the claim and title passed to his son Friedrich Wilhelm . In the 19th century, the future King Wilhelm I carried the title Prince of Prussia .

progeny

August Wilhelm had the following children from his marriage:

⚭ 1. 1765 (closed 1767) Princess Elisabeth of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1746–1840)
⚭ 2nd Princess Friederike of Hessen-Darmstadt (1751–1805)
⚭ 1767 Prince Wilhelm V of Orange , governor of the Netherlands (1748–1806)
  • Emil (1758–1759)

literature

Web links

Commons : August Wilhelm von Prussia (1722–1758)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Henry Lloyd : History of the Seven Years' War in Germany. Volume 1, Berlin 1783.
  2. ^ Henry Lloyd : History of the Seven Years' War in Germany. Volume 1, Berlin 1783.
  3. ^ Theodor Fontane : Walks through the Mark Brandenburg . Volume 1 ( Grafschaft Ruppin ) “Rheinsberg” - The large obelisk in Rheinsberg and its inscriptions.
  4. ↑ Frederick the Great had Jakob Friedrich von Bielfeld hold a straw wreath speech for the occasion ( straw wreath speech at a high wedding at the Royal Prussian Court ), Leipzig 1742, online .
personal data
SURNAME Prussia, August Wilhelm von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Prussian prince and general, father of Friedrich Wilhelm II.
DATE OF BIRTH August 9, 1722
PLACE OF BIRTH Berlin
DATE OF DEATH June 12, 1758
Place of death Oranienburg