239 years ago today, on August 17, 1786 (the 24th of the seventh lunar month), King Frederick the Great of Prussia passed away.

Frederick II Friedrich II (January 24, 1712 - August 17, 1786), known as Frederick the Great. King of Prussia (May 31, 1740 - August 17, 1786), strategist, composer. During his reign, Prussian military developed on a large scale, territorial expansion, culture and art were sponsored, enabling Prussia to achieve hegemony in Germany. Frederick II was one of the greatest generals in European history, and made great achievements in politics, economy, philosophy, law, and even music.

Even in the face of severe storms and the threat of subversion at any time, I still want to live and die like a king. Titles are just the ornament of fools, great men don't need anything, names are enough; the true faith of a prince is his interest and glory; in my country, everyone can find comfort in the soul in his own way - Frederick II

The Prussian spirit, which is a very awe-inspiring term, is based on its militarist system. The entire country is a large military camp, and the entire national institution is a military machine, fully supporting a huge army that represents the honor of the country. The "Spirit of Prusch" developed to its peak during the time of Frederick II, and this king also remained in Qing history as the "God of War".

Frederick II was undoubtedly a lucky man, and his ancestors left him rich capital. The Hohenzollern family grew from a city-state lord in the mountains of Switzerland to a ruler of a vast land in North Germany, with titles ranging from count to electorate to king. More importantly, he was left with a strong and efficient army. However, in his youth, Frederick was a man who loved freedom, loved literature and art, hated autocracy and obedience, and was full of rebellious character. He happened to have a stubborn "military king" father, so the father and son engaged in a common competition between regulation and anti-regulation. However, when this competition occurred in the Wang family, it became even more cruel. Young Frederick was often beaten with sticks and verbally stimulated by his father. At the age of 18, in order to resist the marriage arranged by his father, he planned to escape with several companions. As a result, he was put in prison and was arranged to watch the bloody scene of his companions being beheaded.

The days in prison allowed him to pass through the restlessness of his adolescent years, he began to become deeply rational, and the traditions of the Hohenzollern family began to manifest themselves in him. In the days that followed, he found a strong interest in politics and military affairs, participated in the practice of the War of the Polish Succession, and initially established a set of military theories. In 1740, he inherited the throne and a well-trained army of more than 80,000 people, and continued to expand the army to more than 200,000 people, becoming a tool for practicing his theory that "the basic law of government is the expansion of territory."

Frederick was not only an outstanding military commander, but also a wise military theorist. He created the famous theory of "diagonal combat formation". The key point is to retract one wing of his team and strengthen the other wing ready for attack, so that it can locally form an advantage and attack the enemy's flank. It is suitable for using less to fight more, and achieve victory at a decision point before the enemy's large troops enter the war. He also established many famous combat principles, such as "protect your flank and rear, detour the enemy's flank and rear", and taking annihilating the enemy's vital forces as the main goal.

In his first year on the throne, Frederick encountered a great opportunity to practice. In 1740, the Austrian Archduchess Maria Theresia succeeded her father. Because the succession of women was unprecedented in Germany, Frederick used this as an excuse to form an alliance with France, Bavaria, and Saxony to launch a war against Austria. The Austrian side had British support, known in history as the "War of the Austrian Succession." Frederick was not interested in the Austrian throne. He wanted Silesia, a developed industrial base where Germans were concentrated. The war went very smoothly, and the Prussian army quickly occupied the entire of Silesia and defeated the Austrian army at the Battle of Morwitz and the Battle of Hortussis. Frederick cleverly used Austria's contradictions with France and Bavaria to win one after another. Finally, through the Peace of Dresden, he occupied the entire Silesia and became the biggest beneficiary of this war.

But the stubborn Maria Theresia refused to let go and was determined to regain Silesia and win France, Russia, and Sweden to her side through diplomacy, while Frederick allied himself with Britain. In 1756, the smoke rose again, and the war became even more fierce. Britain and France mainly fought overseas, while in mainland Europe, Prussia competed alone with Austria, France, Russia and other countries. Frederick's diplomatic mistakes led to his outnumbered opponents, but he achieved a series of classic works in military affairs. The Battle of Rossbach in 1757 was a masterpiece of annihilating the enemy in mobile warfare, and the Battle of Leuten was a perfect practice of "diagonal combat formation", a "masterpiece of motivation and determination." But despite this, in the face of the step-by-step advance of major enemy armies that were far stronger than themselves, Prussia's national strength was almost exhausted and Berlin was in danger. Frederick once carried a strong poison and was ready to commit suicide at any time. Fortunately, the change of Russian regime gave him a breather. Finally, the "Seven Years War" was ended with dignity and Silesia was saved. The Seven Years War not only affected Europe, but also America and Asia. Because Frederick restrained France's military power to the greatest extent, preventing France from caring about its colonies in North America and India, control of Canada and India fell into the hands of the British.

In terms of territorial expansion, Frederick also backed by force in 1772, colluded with Russia and Austria to divide up Poland for the first time, acquiring a large area of land along the Baltic Sea coast, connecting East Prussia with the headquarters of the country.

Frederick was admired by future generations mainly because of his military reputation, but he was also an expert in politics. He labeled his rule with the most popular label of "enlightened dictatorship" in Europe at that time. In fact, he was more autocracy than enlightened. He reorganized the "Supreme Administration of Finance, Military and Crown Territories" to more concentrate power in the hands of the king himself. He required his ministers to be efficient and honest, but did not allow them to think independently."The king is the only mind, and the bureaucracy is just his hands and feet." He asked each minister to focus on his own field of responsibility, and only he could master the overall situation. Of course, the premise of all this is that the king himself is very diligent and never tired of reviewing official documents and letters from morning to night. It is not an exaggeration to describe it as "painstaking".

Of course, as an emperor influenced by the Enlightenment ideas of the 18th century, Frederick's "enlightenment" was not just a whitewash. He led the judicial reform that was at the leading level in Europe at that time. For the first time, he published a unified draft constitution in Prussia, expressing the spirit of the rule of law and the king's spirit of judicial independence that completely renounced interfering in the judiciary. Adhering to the spirit of Roman law that "all things should be decided by all people", he ordered that subjects should have extensive discussions on the legal provisions and solicit opinions widely. The annotations of politicians and philosophers in the 18th century on "enlightenment", such as religious tolerance, encouragement of science and culture, and relaxation of censorship of newspapers and periodicals, are all reflected in the Constitution. Frederick also developed and improved the compulsory education system pioneered by his father. In 1763, he promulgated the "Rural School Regulations", stipulating that children aged 5 to 13 must receive compulsory education. Prussia became the first country in the world to establish a relatively standardized compulsory education system. Frederick called himself a "philosopher in terms of nature" and had close interactions with Voltaire, who was the leader of the Enlightenment, but in the end they parted ways due to different aspirations. In Frederick's thoughts in his later years, the element of "autocracy" became more and more important.

Frederick was committed to improving the conditions of farmers, building water conservancy, and promoting mercantilism. During his more than 40 years in office, despite being devastated by war, Prussia's economy has achieved rapid development. The population has increased from 2.2 million to 5.43 million, annual tax revenue has nearly tripled, and the treasury reserves have increased from 8 million to 50 million thales. What he bequeathed to his successors was a strong and prosperous Prussia. For this reason, he was revered by later generations as "Frederick the Great".

Frederick the Great was a well-known military statesman and self-proclaimed philosopher. He was also a well-written writer who left behind many works such as Principles of War, Political Paradigms, Military Paradigms, and Outlines of Arrangements and Tactics. He loved literature and art all his life and was good at playing the flute.

Frederick the Great's military practice and theory inherited Gustav II, Durny, Eugen, etc., and followed by Napoleon, Moltke, etc., and was an important figure in the history of European military development. He changed the political landscape of Europe, and later Prussia could accumulate the power to unify Germany. The era of Frederick the Great was a key. However, some people believe that Prussia, which had become increasingly militarist during Frederick's era, could already find its shadow in later Nazi Germany. Frederick the Great was a very complex figure that seemed difficult to summarize in an article. This article mainly focuses on his influence on history. It may be more appropriate to rank him 41st, after Suleiman the Great and before Gustav II.

Comments: Institutional advantages are the foundation of Prussia's strong country, including its institutional advantages that are one step ahead of its neighbors in military, judicial, education and other aspects. The intimidating "Prussian spirit" is actually expressed by the perseverance and irresistible nature of the implementation system. In contrast, Frederick the Great's art of military command was only icing on the cake.