“The king failed on a grand, strategic scale in two critical components.”

By Michael G. Stroud

EUROPE HAS been the breeding ground for some of the greatest military commanders in history, from Prince Eugene of Savoy (1663-1736) in the service of the Holy Roman Empire to the warrior-king of Sweden, Gustavus Adolphus (1594-1632). It would be a short of stature, no more than five feet three inches, artistically inclined yet harshly raised Prussian monarch that would rise above them and loom large in military history. Frederick II of Prussia (1712-1786) would forever be an iconic commander and icon for his unlikely military successes as well as a misguided monarch for his failures.

To understand the military leader and titanic figure that would come to be Frederick the Great and nicknamed “Old Fritz” one must first understand his upbringing as it forged his ideology and personality.

Born on a cold and blustery Sunday in January to the booming of cannons for all to acknowledge, the future military leader’s destiny was decided for him when his grandfather, King Frederick I (1657-1713) stated the name Frederick “‘has always brought good fortune to my House.’”[1]

Frederick would grow up a sickly and delicate boy, who would begin his military indoctrination at the age of seven by two military officers. The future king gravitated toward the arts, literature, and music, but his iron-handed and tyrannical father, Frederick William I (1688-1740) would have none of that as he viewed those pursuits as too effeminate for any son of his.

After surviving being court-martialed (for fleeing Prussia) and a sentence of death that was interdicted through the demands of other European nobles, Frederick bent and forged his values and personality to acquiesce to his father’s expectations. It was in that moment that Frederick “became a liar, a hypocrite, a cynic and a practiced dissembler” who would go the rest of his life hiding his true feelings from all, while vigorously pursuing all matters of statecraft and military leadership.[2] Frederick would mercilessly apply all manners of his personality and energy to his military endeavors upon becoming king at the age of 28 with the death of his father on May 31, 1740.

It was from his new position as king of Prussia that afforded Frederick the power and status to begin his military ascendancy and numerous successes. The first would have been in his invasion on the Austrian region of Silesia, better known as the Silesian Wars (1740-1745). At the time, Frederick had inherited a relatively small, yet highly drilled Prussian army of around 81,000 with Prussia itself seemingly surrounded by enemies and with no alliances to speak of so the opportunities were ripe for the new king and commander to change the European dynamic. Frederick in invading Silesia saw an opportunity as he had an “’Army ready for acting; Funds, Supplies all found [lying barrelled in the Schloss at Berlin];–and perhaps the desire of making oneself a name.’”[3]

In the span of five years, Frederick and his highly drilled infantry-based army, literally outgunned their Austrian opposition, being able to deliver five rounds per minute compared to the Austrians two, which led to various treaties being signed and Frederick and Prussia securing Silesia.

Frederick was very much an enlightened despot, a ruler that believed utterly and completely in his duty to vigorously lead his people and his country and he demanded obedience and compliance from them all. The king spoke of the serious view he held as to his role and that of the people:

The sovereign is the representative of his State. He and his people form a single body. Ruler and ruled can be happy only if they are firmly united. The sovereign stands to his people in the same relation in which the head stands to the body. He must use his eyes and his brain for the whole community, and act on its behalf to the common advantage.[4]

It was from this perspective of absolutism, that Frederick achieved lasting success in his transformation of both Prussia as a whole and Berlin as a capital of culture, the arts, and scientific pursuits. Frederick instituted an extensive building program in Berlin, to rival those of his royal peers and poured resources into the advancement of scientific research and study. Prussia had been a purposefully isolated and, in many ways, ignorant European state (Fredericks’s father thought it easier to control the people through their ignorance) and for Prussia to be taken seriously as a rival and enlightened power amongst the old order, Frederick saw to it that this would be changed. The king also instituted massive reforms of the judicial system, realizing that a centralized judicial system “was vital to royal absolutism and that fair judicial processes were vital if the kingdom was to prosper.”[5] Through his natural aggressiveness, ambition, temperament, and iron will, Frederick transformed Prussia into a modern state of the times and a power to rival those of a much larger scale.

This same personality, however, was also what led to his failures. Frederick’s single biggest failure as commander and king of Prussia was never finishing his opponents off and thus leaving Prussia open for future retribution. Put another way, the king failed on a grand, strategic scale in two critical components. First, as Frederick launched his immaculately drilled and honed Prussian army on their opponents to ravage them with their Oblique Order of attack, he consistently failed to decisively crush his armies, instead fighting them to terms that he considered acceptable. This short-sightedness on his part allowed for his enemies to rearm, replenish their troops, and seek revenge for any losses suffered at his hand.

The second critical fault of Frederick’s command ability is that he never truly understood or appreciated the concept of power politics with his monarchial counterparts. Even at the age of 67 in May of 1779, and after forming a tentative alliance with Czarina Catherine of Russia (1729-1796) that Frederick knew was suspect at best due to her desire to see the Turkish empire broken up, which Frederick opposed, the Prussian king failed to grasp the machinations already underway. In fact, the Czarina at the time “was slowly moving toward a diplomacy that would isolate Prussia” as she astutely knew that “Frederick needed her more than she needed him.”[6]

In failing to appreciate the grand game of strategic politics on a wider scale, Frederick failed his beloved Prussia as the country would be devastated upon his death from their enemies. This would lead to destroyed farmlands, ravaged Prussian cities and a population that would decidedly be made poorer in nearly every aspect.

Frederick the Greats reputation as one of the greatest military commanders in history is well established and solidified. Taking a small, backwater European state, instilling iron discipline and command and control over a small, but highly lethal infantry-based military and then unleashing them on his neighbours for monarchial and military glory, brought both the king and Prussia itself immense status and prestige. However, with the greatest glories came the greatest failures, with Frederick failing to appreciate that the greatest war that had to be won wasn’t always on the battlefield. In failing to deal a fatal blow to his enemies’ armies, combined with failing to deal them as much politically through lasting and binding alliances, Frederick failed to protect his country beyond his death.

Michael Stroud is a military historian with a passion for travel. He’s visited Napoleon’s Tomb, Versailles, Rome, Pompeii, Gettysburg and Antietam. He currently lives in Coldwater, Michigan with his wife Kellie. You can follow him on LinkedIn.

Notes

[1] Robert B. Asprey, Frederick the Great: The Magnificent Enigma (New York, NY: Ticknor & Fields, 1986), 3.

[2] Albert Seaton and Michael Youens, Frederick the Great’s Army (Reading, UK: Osprey, 1973), 6.

[3] Thomas Carlyle, “The Project Gutenberg Works of Thomas Carlyle, Including The History of Friedrich II. Of Prussia, and Others.,” ed. David Widger, Project Gutenberg, 2018, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/25808/25808-h/25808-h.htm.

[4] Frederick II, “Frederick II: Essay on Forms of Government,” trans. J. Ellis Barker, Fordham University, accessed January 27, 2022, https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/18fred2.asp.

[5] Robert B. Asprey, Frederick the Great: The Magnificent Enigma (New York, NY: Ticknor & Fields, 1986), 365.

[6] Ibid., 625. 

Bibliography 

Asprey, Robert B. Frederick the Great: The Magnificent Enigma. New York, NY: Ticknor & Fields, 1986.

Carlyle, Thomas. “The Project Gutenberg Works of Thomas Carlyle, Including The History of Friedrich II. Of Prussia, and Others.” Edited by David Widger. Project Gutenberg, 2018. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/25808/25808-h/25808-h.htm.

Frederick II. “Frederick II: Essay on Forms of Government.” Translated by J. Ellis Barker. Fordham University. Accessed January 27, 2022. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/18fred2.asp.

Seaton, Albert, and Michael Youens. Frederick the Great’s Army. Reading, UK: Osprey, 1973.