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81-551: In 1859, Prince Wiilhelm of Prussia , who was acting as regent for his seriously ill brother Friedrich Wilhelm IV , appointed Friedrich Albrecht Count of Eulenburg Extraordinary Envoy to a Prussian Mission to Eastern Asia. The major participants of the expedition were Friedrich Albrecht zu Eulenburg, Lucius von Ballhausen (doctor), Max von Brandt (attaché), Wilhelm Heine (painter), Albert Berg (artist), Karl Eduard Heusner , Fritz von Hollmann , Werner Von Reinhold , Ferdinand von Richthofen and Gustav Spiess . The expedition

162-545: A commercial treaty with the Qing Empire, which was modeled on the French Treaty of Tianjin . In the treaty, Prussia represented the whole German Customs Union and the treaty would govern Sino-German relations until World War I , when the treaty was repudiated by China. When the expedition reached Siam, the delegation had been expected by King Mongkut for a year. He "expressed his delight and inquired about

243-536: A bridge to the future." Wilhelm I This is an accepted version of this page William I (Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888), or Wilhelm I , was King of Prussia from 1861 and German Emperor from 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern , he was the first head of state of a united Germany. He was de facto head of state of Prussia from 1858, when he became regent for his brother Frederick William IV . During

324-420: A castle named Mikilenburg ( Old Saxon for "big castle", hence its translation into Neo-Latin and Greek as Megalopolis ), located between the cities of Schwerin and Wismar . In Slavic languages it was known as Veligrad , which also means "big castle". It was the ancestral seat of the House of Mecklenburg ; for a time the area was divided into Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz among

405-444: A crown above, may have originated from this period. It represents what early peoples would have worn, i.e. a steers's head as a helmet , with the hide hanging down the back to protect the neck from the sun, and overall as a way to instill fear in the enemy. From the 7th through the 12th centuries, Mecklenburg was inhabited by Western Slavs who migrated there from what is now eastern Poland and north-western Ukraine . Among them were

486-473: A flag of 3.75 to 5.625 M with the middle arms on a white quadrant (1.75 M) in the middle. The middle arms show the shield of Mecklenburg as arranged in the 17th century. The county of Schwerin in the middle and in the quartering Mecklenburg (bull's head with hide), Rostock ( griffin ), principality of Schwerin (griffin surmounting green rectangle), Ratzeburg (cross surmounted by crown), Stargard (arm with hand holding ring) and Wenden (bull's head). The shield

567-490: A genuine Prussian officer, whose good common sense was occasionally undermined by "female influences". This was a reference to William's wife, who had been educated by, among others Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and was intellectually superior to her husband. She was also at times very outspoken in her opposition to official policies as she was a liberal . William, however, had long been strongly opposed to liberal ideas. Despite possessing considerable power as Kaiser, William left

648-478: A heated discussion, Bismarck threatened to resign if William continued to Vienna; Bismarck got his way. William had to content himself with becoming the de facto ruler of the northern two-thirds of Germany. Prussia annexed several of Austria's allies north of the Main, as well as Schleswig-Holstein. Saxe-Lauenburg was already in a personal union with Prussia since 1865 (which became a full union in 1876). In 1867,

729-513: A permanent basis. Against the advice of his brother, William swore an oath of office on the Prussian constitution and promised to preserve it "solid and inviolable". William appointed a liberal, Karl Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen , as Minister President and thus initiated what became known as the "New Era" in Prussia, although there were conflicts between William and the liberal majority in

810-664: A prominent figure within the Prussian Army . In 1840, his childless elder brother became King of Prussia, making him heir presumptive . William played a major role in crushing the Revolutions of 1848 in Germany , although he was briefly forced into exile in England. Frederick William IV suffered a stroke in 1857 and was left incapacitated, and William was formally named Prince Regent a year later. In 1861, William ascended to

891-585: A title such as Präsident as it sounded too republican. William became also the constitutional Bundesfeldherr , the commander of all federal armed forces. Via secret treaties with the South German states, he also became commander of their armies in times of war. In 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War , William was in command of all the German forces at the crucial Battle of Sedan . During

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972-536: A window which becomes unique reference source. The 150th anniversary of Japanese-German relations commemorates the Eulenburg expedition and both the short- and long-term consequences of the treaty of amity and commerce which was signed by Japanese and German negotiators. From autumn 2010 through autumn 2011, events were planned in Germany and in Japan hoping "to 'raise the treasures of our common past' in order to build

1053-447: Is named after him. Mecklenburg Mecklenburg ( German pronunciation: [ˈmeːklənbʊʁk] ; Low German : Mękel(n)borg [ˈmɛːkəl(n)bɔrx] ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania . The largest cities of the region are Rostock , Schwerin , Neubrandenburg , Wismar and Güstrow . The name Mecklenburg derives from

1134-416: Is supported by a bull and a griffin and surmounted by a royal crown. The dukes of Strelitz used according to Siebmachers the blue-yellow-red flag with just the (oval) shield of Mecklenburg in the yellow band. Ströhl in 1897 and Bulgaria show another arrangement: The grand-duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin flows a flag (4:5) with the arms of the figures from the shield of arms. The former Schwerin standard with

1215-484: Is the site of many prehistoric dolmen tombs. Its earliest organised inhabitants may have had Celtic origins. By no later than 100 BC the area had been populated by pre-Christian Germanic peoples . The traditional symbol of Mecklenburg, the grinning steer 's head ( Low German : Ossenkopp , lit.: 'oxen's head', with osse being a synonym for steer and bull in Middle Low German ), with an attached hide, and

1296-598: The Stettiner Gardelandwehrbataillon and in 1818 was promoted to Generalmajor . The next year, William was appointed inspector of the VII. and VIII. Army Corps . This made him a spokesman of the Prussian Army within the House of Hohenzollern . He argued in favour of a strong, well-trained, and well-equipped army. In 1820, William became commander of the 1. Gardedivision and in 1825

1377-721: The Niederwalddenkmal in Rüdesheim . A group of anarchists had prepared an attack using dynamite which failed due to the wet weather. The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 organized by Otto von Bismarck can be seen as the formalization of the Scramble for Africa . Claiming much of the left-over territories in Africa and Oceania that were yet unclaimed, Germany managed to build the large German colonial empire . Despite

1458-492: The Austro-Prussian War in 1866. After the latter was won by Prussia, William wanted to march on to Vienna and annex Austria, but was dissuaded from doing so by Bismarck and his son Crown Prince Frederick . Bismarck wanted to end the war quickly, so as to allow Prussia to ally with Austria if it needed to at a later date; Frederick was also appalled by the casualties and wanted a speedy end to hostilities. During

1539-566: The Bakufu were protracted and would last for several months. Before the treaty was signed, Count Eulenburg suffered another setback. During the negotiations with the Bakufu, Count Eulenburg had been assisted by Henry Heusken , a Dutch-American interpreter who usually worked for the US consul Townsend Harris . After having dinner with Count Eulenburg on the night of 15 January 1861, Heusken repaired to

1620-490: The Baltic Sea . Under the peat of Mecklenburg are sometimes found deposits of ancient lava flows. Traditionally, at least in the countryside, the stone from these flows is cut and used in the construction of homes, often in joint use with cement, brick and wood, forming a unique look to the exterior of country houses. Mecklenburg has productive farming, but the land is most suitable for grazing for livestock. Mecklenburg

1701-610: The Battle of Leipzig , 18 October, for this event, which was the first Prussian coronation ceremony since 1701 and the only coronation of a German king after 1806. William refused to comply with his brother's wish, expressed in Frederick William's last will, that he should abrogate the constitution. William inherited a conflict between Frederick William and the liberal Landtag. He was considered to be politically neutral as he intervened less in politics than his brother. In 1862

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1782-1037: The County of Glatz ; Grand Duke of the Lower Rhine and of Posen ; Duke of Saxony , of Westphalia , of Angria , of Pomerania , Lüneburg , Holstein and Schleswig , of Magdeburg , of Bremen , of Guelders , Cleves , Jülich and Berg , Duke of the Wends and the Kassubes , of Crossen , Lauenburg and Mecklenburg ; Landgrave of Hesse and Thuringia ; Margrave of Upper and Lower Lusatia ; Prince of Orange ; Prince of Rügen , of East Friesland , of Paderborn and Pyrmont , of Halberstadt , Münster , Minden , Osnabrück , Hildesheim , of Verden , Cammin , Fulda , Nassau and Moers ; Princely Count of Henneberg ; Count of Mark , of Ravensberg , of Hohenstein , Tecklenburg and Lingen, of Mansfeld , Sigmaringen and Veringen; Lord of Frankfurt. Wilhelm Island

1863-524: The East German government ended the independent existence of Mecklenburg, creating three districts ("Bezirke") out of its territory: Rostock, Schwerin and Neubrandenburg. During German reunification in 1990, the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern was revived, and is now one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany . The House of Mecklenburg was founded by Niklot , prince of

1944-642: The Franco-Prussian War , the South German states joined the North German Confederation, which was reorganized as the German Empire (Deutsches Reich). The title of Bundespräsidium was replaced with the title of German Emperor (Deutscher Kaiser). This was decided on by the legislative organs, the Reichstag and Bundesrat , and William agreed to this on 8 December in the presence of a Reichstag delegation. The new constitution and

2025-537: The Kroll Opera House in Berlin, and was given the name Agnes Kroll. She married a Carl Friedrich Ludwig Dettman (known as "Louis") and emigrated to Sydney, in 1849. They had a family of three sons and two daughters. Agnes died in 1904. In 1829, William married Princess Augusta , the daughter of Grand Duke Karl Friedrich of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and Maria Pavlovna , the sister of Nicholas I. Their marriage

2106-673: The North German Confederation was created as a federation (federally organised state) of the North German and Central German states under the permanent presidency of Prussia. William assumed the Bundespräsidium , the presidium of the Confederation; the post was a hereditary office of the Prussian crown. Not expressis verbis , but in function he was the head of state. Bismarck intentionally avoided

2187-469: The Northern Crusades . From the 12th to 14th centuries, large numbers of Germans and Flemings settled the area ( Ostsiedlung ), importing German law and improved agricultural techniques. The Wends who survived all warfare and devastation of the centuries before, including invasions of and expeditions into Saxony , Denmark and Liutizic areas as well as internal conflicts, were assimilated in

2268-681: The Obotrites and other tribes that Frankish sources referred to as " Wends ". The 11th-century founder of the Mecklenburger dynasty of Dukes and later Grand Dukes , which lasted until 1918, was Nyklot of the Obotrites. In the late 12th century, Henry the Lion , Duke of the Saxons , reconquered the region, took oaths from its local lords, and Christianized its people, in a precursor to

2349-581: The Obotrites , Chizzini and Circipani on the Baltic Sea, who died in 1160. His Christian progeny was recognized as prince of the Holy Roman Empire 1170 and Duke of Mecklenburg 8 July 1348. On 27 February 1658 the ducal house divided in two branches: Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz . The flag of both Mecklenburg duchies is traditionally made of the colours blue, yellow and red. The sequence however changed more than once in

2430-471: The Second Schleswig War and the Austro-Prussian War , establishing Prussia as the leading German power. In 1871, through Bismarck's maneuvers, the unification of Germany was achieved following the Franco-Prussian War . The German Empire was proclaimed and William was granted the title of German Emperor. Even though he had considerable power as Kaiser , William largely left the affairs of

2511-571: The Social Democratic Party , his actions were used as a pretext by Bismarck to ban the party. To do this, Bismarck partnered with Ludwig Bamberger , a Liberal, who had written on the subject of Socialism, "If I don't want any chickens, then I must smash the eggs." These attempts on William's life thus became the pretext for the institution of the Anti-Socialist Laws , which were introduced by Bismarck's government with

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2592-489: The state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern . Mecklenburg contributed about two-thirds of the geographical size of the new state and the majority of its population. Also, the new state became temporary or permanent home for many refugees expelled from former German territories seized by the Soviet Union and Poland after the war. The Soviets changed the name from "Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania" to "Mecklenburg" in 1947. In 1952,

2673-632: The American Legation at Zenpuku Temple in Edo. He was accompanied by three mounted officers and four footmen bearing lanterns. The party was suddenly ambushed by seven shishi from the Satsuma clan. Heusken suffered mortal wounds to both sides of his body in the fight. He mounted a horse and galloped about 200 yards to the American Legation, where he was taken inside and treated. Later that night Heusken died of his wounds. This setback did not derail

2754-533: The Emperor drove past in an open carriage, the assassin fired two shots from a shotgun at him from the window of a house off the Unter den Linden . William was severely wounded and was rushed back to the palace. Nobiling shot himself in an attempt to commit suicide. While William survived this attack, the assassin died from his self-inflicted wound three months later. Despite the fact that Hödel had been expelled from

2835-861: The Eulenburg expedition arrived in Tianjin , where Count Eulenburg initiated negotiations with the Zongli Yamen for a commercial treaty with the Qing Empire . This was not at a very good time for China, since Britain and France had just invaded Beijing in the Second Opium War and the Xianfeng Emperor was still exiled in Chengde . The negotiations took three months and the Emperor died in late August. Finally on 2 September 1861, Count Eulenburg and Qing representative Chonglun signed

2916-507: The French. In 1815, William was promoted to major and commanded a battalion of the 1. Garderegiment . He fought under Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher at the Battles of Ligny and Waterloo . In 1817, he accompanied his sister Charlotte to Saint Petersburg , when she married Emperor Nicholas I of Russia , becoming Empress Alexandra Feodorovna . In 1816, William became the commander of

2997-755: The Grand Duke personally owned half of the countryside. The last Duke abdicated in 1918, as monarchies fell throughout Europe. The Duke's ruling house reigned in Mecklenburg uninterrupted (except for two years) from its incorporation into the Holy Roman Empire until 1918. From 1918 to 1933, the duchies were free states in the Weimar Republic . Traditionally Mecklenburg has always been one of the poorer German regions. The reasons for this may be varied, but one factor stands out: agriculturally

3078-525: The Landtag on matters of reforming the armed forces. On 2 January 1861, Frederick William IV died and William ascended the throne as William I of Prussia. In July, a student from Leipzig attempted to assassinate William, but he was only lightly injured. Like Frederick I of Prussia , William travelled to Königsberg and there crowned himself at the Schlosskirche. William chose the anniversary of

3159-447: The Landtag refused an increase in the military budget needed to pay for the already implemented reform of the army. This involved expanding the peacetime army from 150,000 to 200,000 men and the annual number of new recruits from 40,000 to 63,000. However, the truly controversial part was keeping the length of military service (raised in 1856 from two years) at three years. When his request (backed by his Minister of War Albrecht von Roon )

3240-417: The Prussian throne on his elder brother's death. Upon ascension, William immediately came into conflict with the liberal Landtag over his proposed military budget. In response, he appointed Otto von Bismarck to the post of Minister President in order to force through his proposals, beginning a partnership that would last for the rest of his life. On the foreign front, William oversaw Prussian victories in

3321-464: The assassination attempts and William's unpopular role in the 1848 uprising, he and his wife were very popular, especially in their later years. Many people considered them the personification of "the old Prussia" and liked their austere and simple lifestyle. William died on 9 March 1888 in Berlin after a short illness, at age 90. He was buried on 16 March at the Mausoleum at Park Charlottenburg . He

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3402-416: The bullet missed, Hödel ran across the street and fired another round which also missed. In the commotion one of the individuals who tried to apprehend Hödel suffered severe internal injuries and died two days later. Hödel was seized immediately. He was tried, convicted, sentenced to death, and executed on 16 August 1878. A second attempt to assassinate William I was made on 2 June 1878 by Karl Nobiling . As

3483-579: The centuries thereafter. However, elements of certain names and words used in Mecklenburg speak to the lingering Slavic influence. An example would be the city of Schwerin , which was originally called Zuarin in Slavic . Another example is the town of Bresegard , the 'gard' portion of the town name deriving from the Slavic word 'grad', meaning city or town. Since the 12th century, the territory remained stable and relatively independent of its neighbours; one of

3564-544: The command of General der Infanterie Werner Kienitz , with the headquarters at Stettin . Mecklenburg was assigned to an Area headquartered at Schwerin , which was responsible for military units in Schwerin , Rostock , Parchim , and Neustrelitz . After World War II , the Soviet government occupying eastern Germany merged Mecklenburg with the smaller neighbouring region of Western Pomerania (German Vorpommern ) to form

3645-522: The crown prince travelled to Russia (against the advice of Bismarck) to mend fences in face-to-face talks. However, by once again threatening to resign, Bismarck overcame the opposition of William to a closer alliance with Austria-Hungary . In October, William agreed to the Dual Alliance ( Zweibund ) between Germany and Austria-Hungary, which was directed against Russia. Another assassination attempt failed on 28 September 1883 when William unveiled

3726-411: The eve of World War I ) until the revolution of 1918 . Life in Mecklenburg could be quite harsh. Practices such as having to ask for permission from the Grand Duke to get married, or having to apply for permission to emigrate, would linger late into the history of Mecklenburg (i.e. 1918), long after such practices had been abandoned in other German areas. Even as late as the later half of the 19th century

3807-634: The extinction of the Güstrow line in 1701, the Güstrow lands were redivided, part going to the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and part going to the new line of Mecklenburg-Strelitz . In 1815, the two Mecklenburgian duchies were raised to Grand Duchies , the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , and subsequently existed separately as such in Germany under enlightened but absolute rule (constitutions being granted on

3888-591: The few German territories for which this is true. During the Reformation , the Duke in Schwerin would convert to Protestantism and so would follow the Duchy of Mecklenburg in 1549 . Like many German territories, Mecklenburg was sometimes partitioned and re-partitioned among different members of the ruling dynasty. In 1621 it was divided into the two duchies of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Güstrow . With

3969-522: The historian Maximilian Wolfgang Duncker , August von Bethmann-Hollweg and Clemens Theodor Perthes  [ de ] . William's opposition to liberal ideas gradually softened. In 1854, the prince was raised to the rank of a field-marshal and made governor of the federal Fortress of Mainz . In 1857 Frederick William IV suffered a stroke and became mentally disabled for the rest of his life. In January 1858, William became Prince Regent for his brother, initially only temporarily but after October on

4050-407: The king, liked to see his working relationship with William as that of a vassal to his feudal superior. Nonetheless, it was Bismarck who effectively directed affairs, domestic as well as foreign; on several occasions he gained William's assent by threatening to resign. During his reign, William was the commander-in-chief of the Prussian forces in the Second Schleswig War against Denmark in 1864 and

4131-505: The land is poor and can not produce at the same level as other parts of Germany. The two Mecklenburgs made attempts at being independent states after 1918, but eventually failed as their dependence on the rest of the German lands became apparent. After three centuries of partition, Mecklenburg was united on 1 January 1934 by the German government. During World War II the Wehrmacht assigned Mecklenburg and Pomerania to Wehrkreis II under

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4212-678: The monument at Porta Westfalica (1896) and the mounted statue of William at the Deutsches Eck in Koblenz (1897). The National Kaiser Wilhelm Monument in Berlin was destroyed by the government of East Berlin in 1950. William and Augusta of Saxe-Weimar had two children: He had two illegitimate twin children, born from an affair with Elisa Radzwill . Agnes Dettman (born 30 January 1824 in Posen; died 3 January 1904 in Sydney, Australia )

4293-578: The name of Prussia, the States of the Customs Union and Mecklenburg . Several participants in the expedition, including Count Eulenburg himself, wrote accounts of the East Asian expedition. Ferdinand von Richthofen later remarked that of the 64 Naval officers who took part in the expedition, 23 went on to have substantial rank in later years. The photographic record of this visit to Japan opens

4374-465: The number and size of the warships, immediately thereafter he asked if the Prussians maintained colonies or had the intention to acquire them." The question answered in the negative "consoled him: he was all the more delighted to gain new unselfish friends as the old ones just became difficult" (Fritz Count of Eulenburg). After a long stay, on 17 February 1862 Fritz Count of Eulenburg signed a Treaty in

4455-558: The order of the Wendic Crown in a white oval. On sea the yellow band in her flag was of course white. The princes (dukes) of Mecklenburg-Schwerin had according to this source their own standard, showing the griffin of Rostock. A flat landscape, Mecklenburg is known for its farmlands—which produces quinoa, wheat, barley and maize—and its animal husbandry, notably its cattle and the Mecklenburger breed of horse. Recently, given

4536-413: The part of the Napoleonic Wars known in Germany as the Befreiungskriege ("Wars of Liberation", otherwise known as the War of the Sixth Coalition ), and was reportedly a very brave soldier. He was made a captain ( Hauptmann ) and won the Iron Cross for his actions at Bar-sur-Aube . The war and the fight against France left a lifelong impression on him, and he had a long-standing antipathy towards

4617-427: The past 300 years. In 1813 the duchies used yellow-red-blue. 23 December 1863 for Schwerin and 4 January 1864 for Strelitz blue-yellow-red was ordered. Mecklenburg-Schwerin however used white instead of yellow for flags on sea by law of 24 March 1855. Siebmachers Wappenbuch gives therefore (?) blue-white-red for Schwerin and blue-yellow-red for Strelitz. According to this source, the grand ducal house of Schwerin used

4698-431: The reign of his grandson Wilhelm II , he was known as Wilhelm the Great . The second son of Prince Frederick William and Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , William was not expected to ascend to the throne. His grandfather, King Frederick William II died the year he was born, and his father was crowned Frederick William III . William fought with distinction during the War of the Sixth Coalition , and afterwards became

4779-432: The reprisals the Social Democratic Party increased its influence among the masses. Under pressure of the mass working-class movement the laws were repealed on 1 October 1890. In August 1878, Alexander II of Russia , William's nephew, wrote a letter (known as Ohrfeigenbrief ) to him complaining about the treatment Russian interests had received at the Congress of Berlin . In response William, his wife Augusta, and his son

4860-400: The restoration of the Holy Roman Empire. Felix Dahn wrote a poem, " Macte senex Imperator " ('Hail thee, old emperor') in which he nicknamed William Barbablanca (whitebeard), a play on the name of the medieval emperor Frederick Barbarossa (redbeard). According to the King asleep in mountain legend, Barbarossa slept under the Kyffhäuser mountain until Germany had need of him. William I

4941-526: The same dynasty. Linguistically Mecklenburgers retain and use many features of Low German vocabulary or phonology. The adjective for the region is Mecklenburgian or Mecklenburgish (German: mecklenburgisch ); inhabitants are called Mecklenburgians or Mecklenburgers (German: Mecklenburger ). Mecklenburg is known for its mostly flat countryside. Much of the terrain is boggy, with ponds, marshes and fields as common features, with small forests interspersed. The terrain changes as one moves north towards

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5022-399: The state to Bismarck. Later in life he was the target of multiple failed assassination attempts, which enabled Bismarck to push through a series of anti-socialist laws . In 1888, which came to be known as the Year of the Three Emperors , William died at the age of 90 after a short illness and was succeeded by his son Frederick . Frederick, already suffering from cancer, died 99 days later and

5103-451: The support of a majority in the Reichstag on 18 October 1878, for the purpose of fighting the socialist and working-class movement. These laws deprived the Social Democratic Party of Germany of its legal status; prohibited all organizations, workers’ mass organizations and the socialist and workers’ press; decreed confiscation of socialist literature; and subjected Social-Democrats to reprisals. The laws were extended every 2–3 years. Despite

5184-529: The task of governing mostly to his chancellor, limiting himself to representing the state and approving Bismarck's every policy. In private he once remarked on his relationship with Bismarck: It is difficult to be emperor under such a chancellor. On 11 May 1878, a plumber named Emil Max Hödel failed in an assassination attempt on William in Berlin . Hödel used a revolver to shoot at the then 81-year-old Emperor, while he and his daughter, Princess Louise , paraded in their carriage on Unter den Linden . When

5265-413: The throne passed to Wilhelm II. The future king and emperor was born William Frederick Louis of Prussia ( Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig von Preußen ) in the Kronprinzenpalais in Berlin on 22 March 1797. As the second son of Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and Prince Frederick William , himself son of King Frederick William II , William was not expected to ascend to the throne. His grandfather died

5346-492: The time and earned him the nickname Kartätschenprinz (Prince of Grapeshot ). Indeed, he had to flee to England for a while, disguised as a merchant. He returned and helped to put down an uprising in Baden , where he commanded the Prussian army. In October 1849, he became governor-general of the Rhine Province and Province of Westphalia , with a seat at the Electoral Palace, Koblenz . During their time at Koblenz , William and his wife entertained liberal scholars such as

5427-400: The title Prinz von Preußen . Against his convictions but out of loyalty towards his brother, William signed the bill setting up a Prussian parliament in 1847 and took a seat in the upper chamber, the Prussian House of Lords . During the Revolutions of 1848 , William successfully crushed a revolt in Berlin that was aimed at Frederick William IV. The use of cannons made him unpopular at

5508-434: The title of Emperor came into effect on 1 January 1871. William, however, hesitated to accept the constitutional title, as he feared that it would overshadow his own title as King of Prussia. He also wanted it to be Kaiser von Deutschland ("Emperor of Germany"), but Bismarck warned him that the South German princes and the Emperor of Austria might protest. William eventually—though grudgingly—relented and on 18 January, he

5589-435: The treaty negotiations, and after four months of negotiations, Count Eulenburg and representatives from the Bakufu signed the " Treaty of Amity, Commerce and Navigation " on 24 January 1861. The treaty was based on other commercial treaties that Japan had signed with other Western powers and it would later count as one of the serial " unequal treaties " that Japan had been forced to sign in the late Tokugawa period. In May 1861,

5670-452: The upheavals and environmental disruptions created by globalisation, German farmers have become concerned about potentially invasive species such as the Greater rhea and the Asian hornet . Mecklenburg has seen a huge increase in tourism since German reunification in 1990, particularly with its beaches and seaside resorts at the Baltic Sea ("German Riviera", Warnemünde , Boltenhagen , Heiligendamm , Kühlungsborn , Rerik and others),

5751-448: The white quadrant is now ascribed to the grand dukes of Strelitz. Ströhl mentions a flag for the grand ducal house by law of 23 December 1863 with the middle arms in the yellow band. And he mentions a special sea flag, the same but with a white middle band. 'Berühmte Fahnen' shows furthermore a standard for grand duchess Alexandra of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, princess of Hannover (1882–1963), showing her shield and that of Mecklenburg joined by

5832-560: The year he was born, at age 53, in 1797, and his father Frederick William III became king. He was educated from 1801 to 1809 by Johann Friedrich Gottlieb Delbrück  [ de ] , who was also in charge of the education of William's brother, the Crown Prince Frederick William . At age twelve, his father appointed him an officer in the Prussian army. William served in the army from 1814 onward. Like his father, he fought against Napoleon I of France during

5913-534: Was a Lutheran member of the Evangelical State Church of Prussia's older Provinces . It was a United Protestant denomination, bringing together Reformed and Lutheran believers. His full title as king of Prussia was William, by the Grace of God , King of Prussia; Margrave of Brandenburg , Burgrave of Nuremberg , Count of Hohenzollern ; Sovereign and Supreme Duke of Silesia and of

5994-560: Was formally proclaimed as emperor in the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles . The date was chosen as the coronation date of the first Prussian king in 1701. In the national memory , 18 January became the day of the foundation of the Empire ( Reichsgründungstag ), although it did not have a constitutional significance. To many intellectuals, the coronation of William was associated with

6075-526: Was outwardly stable, but not a very happy one. In 1834-37 he had the Old Palace in Berlin built as a new family home, in which he continued to live later as king and emperor, while he only used the Berlin Palace for representative purposes. On 7 June 1840 his older brother became King of Prussia. Since he had no children, William was first in line to succeed him to the throne and thus was given

6156-720: Was placed in the care of Joseph Kroll and Agnes Kroll. She later emigrated to Australia, where she started a family. Adalbert Berengar Viktor von Hohenzollern (born 30 January 1824 in Posen ; died 14 January 1882 in Marco, Ceará, Brazil ) was entrusted to the care of the Ursuline convent in Posen. He became a priest and emigrated to Brazil, where he engaged in missionary work throughout the northeastern region. During this period, he fathered an illegitimate child with Maria dos Anjos Chefe da Silveira, named Manoel Chefe da Silveira. William

6237-453: Was promoted to commanding general of the III. Army Corps . Around this time, William became romantically linked with his cousin, Polish noblewoman Elisa Radziwill . In 1826, William was forced to break off the relationship by his father, who deemed it an inappropriate match. It is alleged that Elisa had an illegitimate daughter by William who was brought up by Joseph and Caroline Kroll, owners of

6318-657: Was provided with three warships from the Prussian East Asia Squadron , the SMS ; Arcona , the SMS  Thetis and the SMS  Frauenlob . Before the expedition even reached Japan, the Frauenlob was lost in a typhoon outside Yokohama on 5 September 1860, losing its entire crew of five officers and 42 men, and the two remaining ships decided to anchor in Edo Bay . The negotiations with

6399-546: Was refused, William first considered abdicating, but his son, the Crown Prince, advised strongly against it. Then, on the advice of Roon, William appointed Otto von Bismarck as Minister President in order to force through the proposals. Under the Prussian constitution, the Minister President was responsible solely to the king, not to the Landtag. Bismarck, a conservative Prussian Junker and loyal friend of

6480-550: Was succeeded by his son Frederick, who was already fatally unwell himself (suffering from throat cancer). Frederick spent the 99 days of his reign fighting his illness before dying and being succeeded by his eldest son Wilhelm on 15 June. To honour him a large number of memorials/statues were erected all over the country over the following years. The best known among them are the Kyffhäuser monument (1890–96) in Thuringia ,

6561-670: Was thus portrayed as a second coming of Barbarossa. The Kyffhäuser Monument portrays both emperors. In 1872, he arbitrated a boundary dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States, deciding in favor of the U.S. and placing the San Juan Islands of modern-day Washington within U.S. national territory, thus ending the 12-year bloodless Pig War . In his memoirs, Bismarck describes William as an old-fashioned, courteous, infallibly polite gentleman and

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