His sorrow was my sorrow, and his joy
Sent little leaps and laughs thro' all my frame.
Wilhelmina, the beloved and devoted Sister of Frederick the Great,
will be remembered chiefly as such, although her high character in
other respects, and her chequered and saddened life, render it one of
no common interest.
To her immediate parentage she owed little; and, as is so frequently
the case, we must attribute her excellences to a remoter ancestry. Her
father, the then Prince Royal, afterwards Frederick William of
Prussia, at no period of his life seems to have been possessed of any
qualities of either mind or heart which "become the throned monarch
better than his crown," or are of a truly kingly character. It was
said of him by Macaulay that while "he must be allowed to have
possessed some talents for administration," his "character was
disfigured by odious vices, and his eccentricities were such as had
never before been seen out of a madhouse."
While her father was harsh and cruel, her mother (a daughter of George
I. of England) was scheming and selfish.
Wilhelmina Frederica Sophia was born on the 3rd July, 1709, and as her
parents had looked for an heir, the royal infant had only an
ungracious reception, and the presence of three sovereigns as sponsors
at her baptism was a poor recompense for the love which ought to have
been her portion.
Little Wilhelmina soon showed that she was a precocious child and
possessed of more than ordinary intelligence. When she was three years
old a little brother was born. This was Frederick (afterwards
Frederick the Great) who became such a power in Europe, with whom her
own life was destined to be so much associated, and to whom she became
from childhood so passionately devoted.
The education of the young Princess was given into the hands of a lady
who seems to have been well recommended to her parents, but was in no
sense qualified for the post; and the acquirements attained and good
sense displayed by the pupil in after life, speak more for the
qualities of her own mind and heart than for the care bestowed upon
the choice of her associates.
In her Memoirs the Princess has mentioned a somewhat curious
circumstance, which she takes care to state she considered only a
coincidence. When she was about seven years old the Queen, her mother,
sent for a Swedish astrologer, who was in Berlin, to tell the fortunes
of herself and children. This astrologer foretold that Frederick would
have a troubled youth, but that he would afterwards become one of the
greatest princes that ever reigned, that he would make considerable
acquisitions and die an Emperor. Of the Princess he said that her hand
was not so lucky as that of her brother--that her life would be a
tissue of fatalities, that she would be asked in marriage by four
sovereigns, but would marry none of them. Singularly enough, the
prediction was afterwards fulfilled.
Giving an account of her life at eight years old, she says: "All my
time was taken up with my masters, and my only recreation was to see
my brother. Never was affection equal to ours. His understanding was
good, but his disposition gloomy. He was long considering before he
returned an answer; but then his answers were just. He had great
difficulty in learning, and it was expected that in time he would be
more remarkable for good sense than for wit. My vivacity, on the
contrary, was very great. I was prompt at repartee, and my memory was
excellent. The King was passionately fond of me; he never paid so much
attention to any of his children as to me. But my brother was odious
to him, and never appeared before him but to be ill-used; this
inspired the Prince Royal with an invincible fear of his father, which
grew up with him--even to the age of maturity."
As she grew up, the childhood of Wilhelmina was sadly embittered by
Court intrigues and home quarrels. State favourites plotting against
the King, endeavoured to induce him, while she was yet quite a child,
to engage his daughter in marriage in a certain direction. An
ambitious mother, scheming in another, with the members of the Royal
household acting as spies and go-betweens, did not augur well for the
tranquillity and happiness of the Princess. Alternately caressed and
snubbed, fondled and cuffed, Wilhelmina, young as she was, found her
greatest pleasure in her studies and the society of her brother. It
was she who first aroused him from indifference to intellectual
pursuits, awakened in him a love of study, and stimulated his better
nature. In this way they came to share each other's studies and
recreations, and found in each other's presence mutual sympathy and
consolation. To add to the misfortunes of Wilhelmina, she was
shamefully ill-used and beaten by her governess, who wished, for
purposes of her own, to induce her to disclose what passed between her
father and mother. In consequence of this brutal treatment, Wilhelmina
was from time to time seriously ill. Still Wilhelmina screened her
governess, and it speaks well for her forgiving spirit that, when
dismissal at last came, she deeply grieved for her, and sent her away
loaded with costly presents.
Under a new governess, Madame von Sonsfeld, Wilhelmina's lot was much
brighter. She says: "Madame de Sonsfeld began by studying my
disposition. She observed that I was excessively timid. I trembled
when she was very grave; I had not the heart to say two words together
without hesitating. She represented to the Queen that it would be
proper to divert me, and to treat me with much gentleness, to remove
my fears; that I was extremely docile; and that, by exciting my
ambition, she might do with me whatever she chose. The Queen left her
complete mistress of my education. She every day reasoned with me
about indifferent subjects, and endeavoured to inspire me with good
sentiments on every occurrence. I applied myself to reading, which
soon became my favourite occupation. The emulation which she excited
in me made me relish my other studies. I learnt English, Italian,
history, geography, philosophy, and music. My improvement was
surprisingly rapid; I was so intent upon learning that Madame de
Sonsfeld was obliged to moderate my ardour."
An incident showing her excellent memory, altogether remarkable in a
child of thirteen, may be mentioned. A certain lady, Miss Polnitz, who
was unfriendly towards Wilhelmina, had one day been speaking to the
Queen about what she called her ungainly figure. "It is true," said
the Queen, "that she might look better; but her shape is straight, and
will display itself when she has done growing. However, if you
converse with her, you will find that she is not a mere automaton."
"Miss Polnitz," continues Wilhelmina, "thereupon began to talk with
me, but in an ironical manner, asking me questions which would have
suited a child of four years. I was so vexed that I did not deign to
make any reply. My sullen behaviour gave her an opportunity to hint to
the Queen that I was capricious and haughty, and that I had
scrutinised her from head to foot. This brought upon me severe
reprimands, which continued all the time Miss Polnitz stayed at
Berlin. She quarrelled with me about everything. One day the
conversation turned upon powers of memory. The Queen observed that I
had an excellent memory. Miss Polnitz set up a malicious grin, as much
as to say that she disputed the fact. The Queen, nettled at this,
offered to try me, and proposed a wager that I could learn 150 verses
by heart in an hour's time. 'Well,' said Miss Polnitz, 'I will try her
local memory; and I will bet that she will not remember what I shall
write down.' The Queen was consequently very strenuous to maintain
what she had asserted, and I was sent for. Having taken me aside, the
Queen told me she would freely forgive me all that was past if I
proved successful, and so caused her to win her wager. I did not know
what was meant by a local memory, having never heard of it before.
Miss Polnitz wrote what I was to learn. It was a series of 150
fanciful names of her own invention, all numbered. She read them twice
over to me, always mentioning the numbers; after which I was obliged
to repeat them in succession. I was very fortunate in the first trial;
she desired a second, and asked the names out of order, mentioning
merely the number. I again succeeded, to her great vexation. I had
never made a greater effort of memory; yet she could not prevail with
herself to bestow upon me the slightest commendation. The Queen could
not account for her behaviour, and was much offended, though she held
her peace."
The situation of the Princess at this, as at all times, was one by no
means to be envied. By those from whom she ought to have received the
most loving care she was misunderstood and neglected. Her health from
time to time severely suffered. She had serious illnesses, which were
disregarded by her mother, who, being herself strong and healthy, had
no sympathy for those who were not so. Nor did her path become
smoother as she grew older. The time seems to have been passed in
schemes for her marriage, first to one Prince and then to another. The
Queen had set her heart upon a double alliance with England by the
marriage of Wilhelmina with the Prince of Wales, and of the Crown
Prince Frederick with the Princess Amelia of England. She bent her
energies for years to the accomplishment of this object, for which she
seemed willing to sacrifice everything else. The King was willing, and
at one time it appeared highly probable that it would be carried out.
But the emissaries of Austria desired to prevent such an alliance
between Prussia and England, and secretly sowed the seeds of
dissension and jealousy in the Prussian household. Other marriages for
Wilhelmina were suggested; first with the King of Poland, and (when
negotiations for this came to an end) afterwards with the Duke of
Weissenfels. All these were quite regardless of her own inclinations
and affections. Her views upon marriage differed from those of both
her parents. She says:--"I maintain that a happy union ought to be
founded upon mutual esteem and regard. I would have chosen reciprocal
affection as its basis, and that my complaisances and attentions
should flow from this source. Nothing appears difficult to us for
those we love.... I wished for a real friend, to whom I could feel
both esteem and inclination; who might ensure my felicity; and whom I
might render happy. I foresaw that the Prince of Wales would not suit
me, as he did not possess the qualities which I required. The Duke of
Weissenfels, on the other hand, pleased me still less. The state of my
poor heart may easily be conjectured. There was no one but my
governess who was acquainted with my real sentiments; and to none but
her could I make them known."
Another source of ever-increasing anxiety with the Princess was her
brother Frederick and his relations with the King. The Royal household
was unfortunately a very unhappy one. Coarse and insufficient food
only aggravated an unhappiness caused by the King's harsh and
sometimes brutal treatment. Wilhelmina and her brother, in consequence
of their having become the innocent cause of the King's disappointment,
became the scapegoats of his unreasonable temper and violent fits of
anger. Frederick grew moody and sullen, still further increasing his
father's displeasure; while Wilhelmina's health became seriously
impaired, and she was frequently alarmingly ill. Alluding to one of
these illnesses, a fever which culminated in the smallpox, she writes:
"In my short intervals of consciousness I ardently wished to die; and
when I saw Madam de Sonsfeld and my good Mermann" [her old nurse]
"weeping near my bed, I endeavoured to console them by telling them
that I was weaned from the world, and that I was going to enjoy a
repose which no one could disturb. I am, said I, the cause of both the
Queen's and my brother's sorrows. If I am to die, tell the King that I
have always loved him, that I have no fault to reproach myself with
towards him; that therefore I hope he will give me his blessing before
I quit this world. Tell him that I beseech him to treat the Queen and
my brother more gently, and to bury all discontents and animosities
against them in my grave. It is the only boon I wish him to grant me;
and my only cause of uneasiness in my present state." During this
illness she was deserted by every member of the Royal household but
her brother, who went daily to spend with her what time he could spare.
The delays from time to time in the proposed betrothals, and the
obstacles placed in the way by the secret intrigues of the
representatives of Austria, considerably angered the King. He declared
he would hear no more of the intended alliance, and gave the Princess
the option of marrying the Duke of Weissenfels or the Margrave of
Schwedt. To this the Queen, who had set her heart on the English
alliance, would not consent. Wilhelmina, in this manner, gained time,
stating that she desired, first of all, to see her father and mother
agreed on the subject. Meanwhile the King's ill-treatment of both
Wilhelmina and her brother continued. She says: "The King starved my
brother and myself: as he himself performed the office of carver, he
helped every one at the table except us; and when by chance there was
a bit left in any dish, he spat on it to prevent our tasting it. We
lived on nothing but coffee and milk, and dried cherries, which
entirely vitiated my stomach. My share of insult and invectives, on
the contrary, was extremely liberal; the most abusive language was
used towards me all the day, and in the presence of every one. The
displeasure of the King was even carried to so great a length, that he
ordered both my brother and myself never to appear in his presence but
at the times of dinner and supper. He never saw my brother without
threatening him with his cane. The Prince repeatedly told me that he
would endure everything from his father except blows; and that if ever
he proceeded to that extremity with him, he would withdraw from his
power by flight."
Frederick was thus reduced to the necessity of meditating flight from
the Court as a means of freeing himself from the continued cruelty of
his father. In this state of mind he writes to his sister:
"I am still in the utmost despair; the tyranny of the King increases;
my patience is exhausted. You vainly flatter yourself that the arrival
of Sir ---- Hotham will put an end to our sufferings. The Queen
frustrates our plans by her blind confidence in Mrs. Ramen. The King
is already informed through this woman of the news which are arrived,
and the measures that are taken, at which he is more and more
exasperated. I wish the old soul was hanged upon the highest gibbet;
she is the cause of all our misfortunes. The Queen ought no longer to
be made acquainted with any intelligence: her weakness for that
infamous creature is unpardonable. The King will go to Berlin on
Tuesday; it is still a secret. Adieu, my dear Sister, I am wholly
Yours."
The anger of the King culminated on intelligence having come to his
ears of the intention of Frederick to seek safety in flight. His fury
knew no bounds. He used personal violence towards the Crown Prince,
had him arrested and placed under restraint. So far did the madness
go, that he was actually condemned to death along with a companion,
Lieut. Katte, who was supposed to have been privy to his intentions.
The sentence of Katte was executed before the eyes of Frederick, who
was himself for many months kept a prisoner. Of Wilhelmina herself the
King's treatment was hardly less severe. She says:--
"The King came back in the meantime. We all ran up to meet him to kiss
his hands; but he had scarcely cast his eyes upon me, when anger and
fury overpowered him. He grew black, his eyes sparkled with rage, and
he foamed at the mouth. 'Infamous baggage!' said he to me, 'dare you
show yourself before me? Go and keep company with your rascal
brother.' In uttering these words, he seized me with one hand, and
struck me several times in the face with his fist; one of his blows
fell on my temples so violently, that I fell backwards, and should
have split my head against the corner of the wainscot, had not Madam
de Sonsfeld broken my fall by seizing me by my head-dress. The King,
no longer master of himself, strove to renew the blows, and trample
upon me; but the Queen, my brothers and sisters, and all who were
present, prevented him. They all surrounded me; which gave Madam de
Kamken and Madam de Sonsfeld time to lift me up. They placed me in a
window-seat which was close by; but seeing that I continued senseless,
they sent one of my sisters for a glass of water and some salts, with
which they insensibly recalled me to life. As soon as I was able to
speak, I reproached them for the pains which they took with me, death
being a thousand times more agreeable than life in the situation in
which we were. To describe its horror is impossible."
The devoted character of the friendship at this time existing between
Wilhelmina and her brother is seen in the following letter which
Frederick managed to get conveyed to her.
"MY DEAR SISTER,--I am going to be declared a heretic by the Court
Martial which is assembling, for not to conform in every respect
to the sentiments of the master is enough to incur the guilty of
heresy. You, therefore, may easily judge how prettily I shall be
dealt with. I little care for the excommunication which will be
thundered at me, provided I know that my amiable sister protests
against it as unmerited. How sweet it is, that neither bars nor
bolts can prevent my assuring you of my undiminished friendship!
Yes, my dear sister, in this almost entirely perverted age, there
are still means of expressing my affection for you. Yes, my dear
sister, provided I know you are happy, my prison will be to me the
abode of felicity and pleasure. _Chi ha tempo ha vita!_ Let that
comfort us. I heartily wish I may no longer need any interpreter
to converse with you, and that we may see those happy days when
your _principe_ and my _principessa_ [their flutes] will sweetly
harmonize; or, to speak more plainly, when I shall have the
pleasure to address you in person, and to assure you that nothing
in the world can diminish my friendship for you. Adieu.
"THE PRISONER."
But the fury of the King was not yet abated. Wilhelmina herself was in
great danger of becoming in a greater measure than heretofore the
victim of his wrath. She gives the following account of an interview
with a messenger of the King, who, on the 5th November, 1730, renewed
the oft-repeated request that she would consent to marry one of the
obnoxious princes. She says: "'The King,' I replied, 'is my master; he
may dispose of my life, but he cannot render me guilty when I am
innocent. I ardently wish to be examined; my innocence would then
shine in all its splendour. With regard to the two proposed princes,
they are both so hateful to me that it would be difficult to choose
betwixt them; however, I shall submit to His Majesty's commands
whenever he agrees with the Queen.' He set up a very insolent laugh.
'The Queen!' exclaimed he; 'the King has peremptorily declared that he
will not suffer her to interfere in anything.' 'Yet he cannot prevent
her continuing my mother, nor deprive her of the authority which that
character gives her over me. How wretched is my fate! What occasion is
there to marry me, and why do my parents not agree concerning the
person whom I am to marry? My lot is most miserable; alternately
threatened with the curses of my father and mother, I do not know what
to resolve, as I cannot obey one without disobeying the other.' 'Well,
then,' continued Eversmann, 'prepare for death; I must no longer
conceal anything from you. There is to be a second trial of the Prince
Royal and Katte, in which you will be still more implicated. The
King's wrath demands a victim; Katte alone will not suffice to
extinguish his rage, and he will be glad to save your brother at your
expense.' 'You delight me,' I exclaimed; 'I am weaned from the world;
the adversities which I have experienced have taught me the vanity of
all terrestrial things; I shall receive death with joy and without
fear, since it will conduct me to a happy tranquillity, of which I
cannot be deprived.' 'But what would then become of the Prince Royal?'
continued Eversmann. 'If I can save his life my felicity will be
complete; and if I die, I shall not feel the misery of surviving
him.'"
The Princess was confined to her bedroom, where her only resource was
reading. She was so deprived of necessary food that her health
continued to suffer greatly, and she became almost as thin as a
skeleton. She mentions a pathetic incident which occurred at this
time. As she and her governess were one day seated at table
contemplating ruefully their apology for a meal, consisting only of a
kind of soup made of water and salt, and "a hash of stale bones, full
of hair and filth," they heard a tapping at the window. Rising to
ascertain the cause, they found it was a crow with a crust of bread in
her bill, which she dropped on the window-ledge, and then flew away.
"Our fate is lamentable indeed," said Wilhelmina to her companion,
"since it moves even dumb creatures; they take more pity on us than
human beings, who treat us with so much cruelty."
The Princess refers to the 6th May, 1731, as the most eventful day of
her life. On that day messengers from the King waited upon her to
renew the subject of her marriage, giving her the further option of
marrying the Hereditary Prince of Baireuth, showing her at the same
time an order for her imprisonment in case of her refusal, and
offering, as a further inducement to her acquiescence, the liberty of
her brother. On Wilhelmina again urging that she desired her father
and mother to be of one mind on the subject, it was represented to her
that the Queen would approve. In this dilemma, she consented to
sacrifice her own inclinations, in the hope of restoring peace and
goodwill in the family and, above all, gaining the pardon of her
brother. Wilhelmina informed her mother of her resolution in the
following letter:--
"MADAM,--Your Majesty is already acquainted with my misfortune by
the letter which I had the honour to address to you yesterday
under cover of the King. I have scarcely strength to trace these
lines; my situation is entitled to commiseration. It is not the
King's menaces, strong as they were, that have obtained my
submission to the will of His Majesty; an interest more dear has
determined me to the sacrifice. Hitherto I have been the innocent
cause of the pains your Majesty has endured. My too feeling heart
was violently affected at the picture your Majesty gave me of your
troubles. My mother wished to suffer for me. Is it not more
natural that I should sacrifice myself for her, and put a final
stop to the fatal disunion of the family? Could I have hesitated a
moment between my brother's misfortune and his pardon? What
horrible projects have been disclosed to me in regard to him! I
shudder as I think of them. Whatever I could have advanced against
the proposal of the King has been reflected on beforehand. You
yourself have proposed the Prince of Baireuth as a suitable match
for me, and you seemed satisfied if I married him; I, therefore,
cannot imagine that you will disapprove of my resolution.
Necessity is a hard law; all my entreaties for leave to obtain
first the consent of your Majesty have been vain. I was forced to
choose either to obey the King with a good grace, and obtain real
advantages for my brother, or to expose myself to violence which
in the end would still have reduced me to the measure which I have
adopted. I shall have the honour to enter into a more minute
account when I am allowed to embrace your Majesty's feet. Full
well I feel how great must be your grief; it is that which affects
me most. I humbly beseech your Majesty not to be disquieted on my
behalf, and to rely on Providence, which does everything for our
welfare; particularly as I deem myself fortunate in becoming the
instrument of my dear mother's and brother's happiness. What would
I not do to convince them of my affection! I once more entreat
your Majesty to take care of your health, and not to impair it by
immoderate sorrow. The prospect of seeing my brother soon must
alleviate your Majesty's present misfortune. I hope your Majesty
will generously forgive the fault I have committed of entering
into any engagement unknown to your Majesty, in consideration of
the tender regard and dutiful respect with which I shall remain
for life, &c., &c."
It might have been thought that such a letter would have appealed to
the better feelings of the Queen, and have aroused all her maternal
sympathy. But not so. Although written in trembling anxiety as to the
manner in which it might be received, probably Wilhelmina, with all
her past experience of her mother's character, was not prepared for
the Queen's reply. It was as follows:--"You break my heart by giving
me the most violent pain I ever felt in my life. I had placed all my
hopes in you; but I did not know you. You have artfully disguised the
malice of your soul and the meanness of your sentiments. I repent a
thousand times over the kindness I have had for you, the care I have
taken of your education, and the torments I have endured for your
sake. I no longer acknowledge you as my daughter, and shall henceforth
consider you as my most cruel enemy, since it is you who sacrifice me
to your prospects and triumph over me. I vow you eternal hatred, and
never shall forgive you."
And Wilhelmina's mother never did forgive her. Her affection,
ill-regulated and spasmodic as it had ever been, seems to have been
withdrawn from her ill-fated daughter for the remainder of her life,
only because she, against the dictates of her own heart and merely to
propitiate her father and save her brother, at last consented to
sacrifice herself by a marriage in which her own affections had not
been consulted.
The Princess was, accordingly, married in November, 1731, when she was
twenty-two years of age. Her beloved brother was set at liberty, and a
few days afterwards she met him, after an absence of more than a year.
As soon as she heard he was present at an assembly, she says:--"All
my blood was in a paroxysm of joy. 'Oh, heavens! my brother!' I
exclaimed; 'let me see him, for heaven's sake.' I leaped into his
arms. I was so agitated that I uttered nothing but broken sentences. I
wept; I laughed; looked like a person beside herself. Never in my life
had I felt joy so lively. When my first emotion had subsided, I threw
myself at the feet of the King, who said aloud, in my brother's
hearing, 'Are you satisfied? You see that I have kept my word.' I took
my brother by the hand and besought the King to admit him again to his
favour. The scene was so affecting that it drew tears from the whole
company." Wilhelmina, however, found her brother considerably changed
and cold in his behaviour towards her. "I no longer," she says, "found
in him that beloved brother who had cost me so many tears, and for
whom I had sacrificed myself." She also writes:--"My brother had quite
changed towards me since his return from the Rhine; a certain
stiffness and embarrassment were visible in all his letters, which
sufficiently showed that his heart was no longer the same. I felt this
very keenly; my affection for him was not diminished, and I had
nothing to reproach myself with. I bore all, however, with patience,
flattering myself that I should one day recover his friendship."
Although Wilhelmina had no voice in arranging that most momentous step
in her life, her own marriage, it proved happier than might have been
expected. The Prince of Baireuth came much nearer answering to the
standard she had formed as to what was desirable in a husband than any
of the other suitors who had been forced upon her notice. Always
faithful to her trust, she learned to love her husband with a devoted
and constant affection. But her life was destined to be always stormy
and tearful. The duties of her new position were trying and difficult,
but she bore herself with dignity and patience amidst the trifling and
intriguing jealousies of the two Courts. Her own marriage was quickly
followed by that of her brother, brought about in his case also
without the concurrence of his own inclination. The following is his
letter announcing to her his engagement:--
"_Berlin, 6 March, 1732._
"MY DEAR SISTER,--Next Monday comes my betrothal, which will
be done just as yours was. The person in question is neither
beautiful nor ugly, nor wanting for sense, but very ill brought
up, timid, and totally behind in manners and social behaviour:
that is the candid portrait of this Princess. You may judge by
that, my dear sister, if I find her to my taste or not. The
greatest merit she has is that she has procured me the liberty of
writing to you; which is the one solace I have in your absence.
"You never can believe, my adorable sister, how concerned I am
about your happiness; all my wishes centre there, and every moment
of my life I form such wishes. You may see by this that I preserve
still that sincere friendship which has united our hearts from our
tenderest years; recognise at least, my dear sister, that you did
me a sensible wrong when you suspected me of fickleness towards
you, and believed false reports of my listening to talebearers--I,
who love only you, and whom neither absence nor lying rumours
could change in respect of you. At least, do not again believe
such things on my score, and never mistrust me until you have had
clear proof, or until God has forsaken me, and I have lost my
wits. And, being persuaded that such miseries are not in store to
overwhelm me, I here repeat how much I love you, and with what
respect and sincere veneration, I am and shall be till death, my
dearest sister, your most humble and faithful brother and valet,
"FREDERICK."
A short time afterwards in writing to her he says:--"God be praised
that you are better, dearest sister, for nobody can love you more
tenderly than I do. God long preserve you in perfect health! And you,
keep for me always the honour of your good graces; and believe, my
charming sister, that never brother in the world loved with such
tenderness a sister so charming as mine; in short believe, dear
sister, that without compliments, and in literal truth, I am, wholly
yours."
That the brother and sister were still the first to each other is
shown by their correspondence, the manner in which they always
consulted each other, and kept each other informed of the incidents in
each other's lives. On the morning of his marriage Frederick writes to
inform his sister of the event:--
"_Salzdalum, Noon, 12th June, 1733._
"MY DEAR SISTER,--A minute since the whole ceremony was got
finished, and, God be praised, it is over! I hope you will take it
as a mark of my friendship that I give you the first news of it. I
hope I shall have the honour to see you again soon, and to assure
you, my dear sister, that I am wholly yours. I write in great
haste, and do nothing that is merely formal. Adieu.
"FREDERICK."
For some years succeeding this period Wilhelmina and her brother do
not seem, apart from their correspondence, to have had much personal
intercourse. An important and interesting factor in their lives was
their acquaintance and correspondence with Voltaire. This appears to
date from the year 1736. Doubtless, during their youthful studies,
pursued together years before, in spite of prohibition and difficulty,
they had become acquainted with the writings of this great author. Now
Frederick opened a correspondence, which, after continuing for four
years, ripened into a closer acquaintance. They, however, never met
until Frederick became King of Prussia. This event took place upon the
death of his father, in May, 1740. In the month of November following
Wilhelmina paid a memorable visit of several months to her brother,
the King, at Rheinsburg, his stately and charming residence near
Berlin, when he introduced Voltaire to her with the words, "I here
present you to my loved sister." In connection with this visit we have
the following pleasing picture:--"When evening comes, with the rough
and chilly autumn air so common to that part of Germany, the candles
are lit in the Queen's apartments, beautifully decorated by Pesne. The
King, who has all day sat brooding over serious undertakings against
the House of Hapsburg, now makes his appearance. The concert begins.
The King leads the Margravine to the piano, and then takes his flute.
During the pauses between the different pieces the Margravine holds
philosophic and other discussions with Maupertis, Algarotti, Jordan,
and Keyserling; but chiefly with Voltaire, whose society was so new,
interesting, and invigorating."[2] The friendship thus formed, though
Wilhelmina and Voltaire did not often meet, was continued by an
interesting correspondence until the close of her troubled life.
[2] "The Margravine of Baireuth and Voltaire." By Dr. George
Horn. Translated by H.R.H. Princess Christian. p. 171.
Frederick, shortly after his accession to the throne, undertook the
campaign against Austria, which when the other European Powers became
involved, and there was arrayed against him perhaps the most powerful
alliance ever formed, resulted in such disastrous wars, and for so
many years disturbed the peace of Europe. How far the quarrel was
justified, and whether the distinguished and eventful, and at the same
time singular, career of Frederick as a King answered the high hopes
formed of him, or proved for the common weal of his own country, are
questions upon which varied opinions have been formed. It is now only
fitting to trace slightly the passionate devotion and constant
affection of the sister whose interest in his life and undertakings
never waned. She never lost the refined and distinguished tastes of
her youth, or abandoned the pursuit of literature and philosophy, and
the cultivation of music. She was herself a proficient performer on
several musical instruments, and found therein and in her love of
learning a solace amidst the domestic troubles which came to embitter
her life, and the enfeebled health in which it was passed. She set a
brilliant example to her people. It has been said: "For twenty-three
years the Court of a country numbering only 200,000 inhabitants
rivalled those of other great countries in intellectual importance and
renown. The Margravine was the magnet which attracted all that was
greatest and most celebrated, all that was worthy of esteem and
consideration."[3]
[3] "The Margravine of Baireuth and Voltaire." p. 2.
After the old Margrave's death her husband presented to her the
Hermitage, a country residence near Baireuth, which she describes as a
perfectly unique place, and as becoming under her directions one of
the most beautiful castles in Germany. She gave much time and
attention to its improvement, laying out the grounds and adding the
most elaborate and beautiful works of art. It was at the Hermitage in
the year 1744 that the Margravine wrote her celebrated Memorials,
which form the chief authority for this account. These Memorials are
deeply interesting and afford a striking picture of the Court life
of the period. If the writer occasionally descends to coarseness
or indelicacy, or speaks bitterly of her earliest years, or
disrespectfully of her parents, we must remember the freedom of the
time at which she wrote, the terrible hardships of her youth, her
afflicted life, and still later, the loss of her husband's affections.
On the whole she stands before us as a noble woman--the graceful and
stately form, the beautifully modelled features, the dignified
demeanour, befitting the possessor of the cultured mind, the kind
heart, the constant and devoted life--faithful even to the death. It
is to be regretted that the Margravine did not bring her Memorials
down to a later period of her life. What remains of it is gleaned from
her correspondence.
In his interludes of peace, as well as, indeed, during his many trying
campaigns, Frederick devoted himself to the pursuit of literature.
Stimulated by this devotion, as well as, doubtless, by a desire to add
to the distinction of his Court and to his own character as a patron
of letters, he induced the great French wit to take up his residence
at the Castle at Potsdam. After the Treaty of Dresden, which closed
the second great Silesian War and inaugurated a ten years' peace, the
King added to his other residences his famous Garden Cottage,
Sans-Souci. Here the literary monarch and the flattering courtier met
and eulogised each other's productions. There is no doubt that
Frederick here appears at his best. He was himself a voluminous
writer, and it is much more pleasing to picture him in his retirement,
writing history and poetry, however feeble, and receiving the plaudits
of sycophants, than deluging the Continent with blood. Here, too,
occasionally came Wilhelmina, renewing her acquaintance with the great
_littérateur_, with whom she had much sympathy in common.
Voltaire's charmed life at Berlin was not, however, destined to be of
long duration. After about two years the King seemed to grow weary of
his intellectual favourite, and found excuses for cooling in his
devotion. The circumstances under which Voltaire finally left Berlin
were such that he, along with his niece, Madame Denis, were arrested,
Voltaire himself only regaining his liberty after the lapse of a
fortnight and on the mediation of the Margravine. This mutual friend
endeavoured in vain to heal the breach between them. Although her own
friendship with Voltaire was maintained during her life, the friendly
character of the intercourse between him and her brother was never
resumed.
But further troubles were in store for Frederick--troubles which were
destined to try the nerves and break the heart of his devoted sister.
When, in 1756, the war with Austria broke out again, the Margravine
felt the keenest interest in it, and followed her brother's fortunes
with aching heart. Intelligence of the brilliant successes which he
gained and the terrible defeats sustained in his single-handed
conflict with the four Powers who took up arms against him was
forwarded by Frederick to his sister as opportunity offered, and
fearful was the strain which her unchanging love was called upon to
sustain during the last two years of her life. Here is a letter from
the King to his sister, reporting progress:--
"_Leitmeritz, 13th July, 1757._
"MY DEAREST SISTER,--The French have just laid hold of Friesland;
are about to pass the Weser; they have instigated the Swedes
to declare war against me; the Swedes are sending 17,000 men
into Pommern; will be burthensome to Stralsund and the poor
country-people mainly, having no captain over them but a
hydra-headed National Palaver at home, and a Long-pole with cocked
hat on it here at hand. The Russians have besieged Memel; Lehwald
has them on his front and in his rear. The troops of the Reich,
from your plain of Furth yonder, are also about to emerge. All
this will force me to evacuate Bohemia so soon as that crowd of
enemies gets into motion. I am firmly resolved on the extremest
efforts to save my country. We shall see if Fortune will take a
new thought, or if she will entirely turn her back upon me. Happy
the moment when I took to training myself in philosophy! There is
nothing else that can sustain the soul in a situation like mine. I
spread out to you, dear sister, the detail of my sorrows; if these
things regarded myself only I could stand it with composure; but I
am bound guardian of the safety and happiness of a people which
has been put under my charge. There lies the sting of it, and I
shall have to reproach myself with every fault, if, by any delay
or over-haste, I occasion the smallest accident; all the more as,
at present, any fault may be capital.
"What a business! Here is the liberty of Germany, and that
Protestant cause for which so much blood has been shed; here are
those two great interests again at stake, and the pinch of this
huge game is such that an entirely unlucky quarter of an hour may
establish over Germany the tyrannous dominion of the House of
Austria for ever! I am in the case of a traveller who sees himself
surrounded and ready to be assassinated by a troop of cut-throats
who intend to share his spoils. Since the League of Cambria, there
is no example of such a conspiracy as that infamous triumvirate
now forms against me. Was it ever seen before that three great
princes laid plot in concert to destroy a fourth, who had done
nothing against them? I have not had the least quarrel either with
France or with Russia, still less with Sweden. If, in common life,
three citizens took it into their heads to fall upon their
neighbour and burn his house about him, they very certainly, by
sentence of tribunal, would be broken on the wheel. What! and will
sovereigns, who maintain these tribunals and these laws in their
States, give such example to their subjects? Happy, my dear
sister, is the obscure man whose good sense, from youth upwards,
has renounced all sorts of glory; who, in his safe, low place, has
none to envy him, and whose fortune does not excite the cupidity
of scoundrels!
"But these reflections are vain! We have to be what our birth,
which decides, has made us in entering upon this world. I reckoned
that, being King, it beseemed me to think as a sovereign, and I
took for principle that the reputation of a prince ought to be
dearer to him than life. They have plotted against me; the Court
of Vienna has given itself the liberty of trying to maltreat me;
my honour commanded me not to suffer it. We have come to war; a
gang of robbers falls on me, pistol in hand: that is the adventure
which has happened to me. The remedy is difficult; in desperate
diseases there are no methods but desperate ones.
"I beg a thousand pardons, dear sister; in these three long pages
I talk to you of nothing but my troubles and affairs. A strange
abuse it would be of any other person's friendship. But yours, my
dear sister, yours is known to me; and I am persuaded you are not
impatient when I open my heart to you--a heart which is yours
altogether, being filled with sentiments of the tenderest esteem,
with which I am, my dearest sister, yours,
"F."
The first of Frederick's lamentation Psalms written during his
reverses consists of an Epistle to Wilhelmina, and commences as
follows:--
"O sweet and dear hope of my remaining days: O sister, whose
friendship, so fertile in resources, shares all my sorrows, and
with a helpful arm assists me in the gulf! It is in vain that the
Destinies have overwhelmed me with disasters: if the crowd of
Kings have sworn my ruin; if the earth have opened to swallow
me--you still love me, noble and affectionate sister: loved by
you, what is there of misfortune?"
In the terrible anxiety which this period brought upon the Margravine
her conduct, no less indeed than at other times, revealed that while
(as has been observed) she possessed the heart of a loving woman she
had the head of a thoughtful man. Voltaire suggested to her that he
might by means of influence with the French Court bring about a peace.
She in reply wrote to him as follows:--
"_19th August, 1757._
"One only knows one's friends when one is in trouble. The letter
you have written to me does much honour to your manner of
thinking. I do not know what way to testify to you how sensible I
am of your conduct. The King is as much so as I am. You will find
a note enclosed herewith which he has ordered me to send you. This
great man is always the same. He bears his misfortunes with a
courage and firmness worthy of him. He was not able to copy the
letter he was writing to you. It began with some verses. Instead
of throwing sand over it he took the inkstand, which is the reason
that it is destroyed. I am in a terrible state, and will not
survive the destruction of my house and my family. That is the
only solution that is left to me. You will have some fine subjects
for Tragedies. Oh! Times! Oh! Morals! You will perhaps draw tears
by illusory reputation, whilst they contemplate with dry eyes the
misfortunes of a whole house, against whom at bottom there is no
real complaint. I cannot say more to you on this subject; my heart
is so troubled that I know not what I am doing. But whatever may
happen be assured that I am more than ever your Friend.
"WILHELMINA."
A further letter from Voltaire produced a reply from which the
following is an extract:--
"_12th September, 1757._
"Your letter has greatly touched me, and the one you addressed to
the King has produced the same effect on him. I hope that you will
be satisfied with his answer, as far as it concerns yourself; but
you will be as little so as I am with his resolutions. I had
flattered myself that your reflections would have made some
impression on his mind. You will see the reverse in the enclosed
note. It only remains to me to follow his destiny, if it is
unfortunate. I have never prided myself on being a philosopher. I
have tried to become one. The little progress I have made has
taught me to despise greatness and riches; but I have found
nothing in philosophy that is able to heal the wounds of the
heart, except the means of getting rid of evils by ceasing to
live. The state in which I am is worse than death. I see the
greatest man of this century, my brother, my friend, reduced to
the most fearful extremity. I see my entire family exposed to
dangers and perils, my Fatherland torn by pitiless enemies, the
country in which I am perhaps menaced by the same misfortunes.
Would to God that I alone had to bear all the troubles I have just
described to you; I would endure them with fortitude.
"WILHELMINA."
This letter as well as the following reveal something of the great
straits in which Frederick found himself. So great were the
extremities to which he was reduced at this time that he had fully
resolved on suicide rather than fall into the hands of his enemies,
and his heroic sister had resolved to share his fate. The expostulations
of Voltaire seem to have been in vain. Frederick again writes to his
sister:--
"_17th September, 1757._
"MY DEAREST SISTER,--I have no other consolation than in your
precious letters. May heaven reward so much virtue and such heroic
sentiments! Since I wrote last to you my misfortunes have but gone
on accumulating. It seems as though Destiny would discharge all
its wrath and fury upon the poor country which I had to rule over.
The Swedes have entered Pommern. The French, after having
concluded a Neutrality, humiliating to the King of England and
themselves, are in full march upon Halberstadt and Magdeburg. From
Prussen I am in daily expectation of hearing of a battle having
been fought; the proportion of combatants being 25,000 against
80,000. The Austrians have marched into Silesia, whither the
Prince of Bevern follows them. I have advanced this way to fall
upon the corps of the allied Army, which has run off and
entrenched itself, behind Eisenach, amongst the hills, whither to
follow, still more to attack them, all rules of war forbid. The
moment I retire towards Saxony, this whole swarm will be upon my
heels. Happen what may, I am determined, at all risks, to fall
upon whatever corps of the enemy approaches me nearest. I shall
even bless Heaven for its mercy, if it grant me the favour to die
sword in hand.
"Should this hope fail me, you will allow that it would be too
hard to crawl at the feet of a company of traitors, to whom
successful crimes have given the advantage to prescribe the law to
me. How, my dear, my incomparable sister--how could I repress
feelings of vengeance and of resentment against all my neighbours,
of whom there is not one who did not accelerate my downfall, and
will not share in our spoils? How could a Prince survive his
State, the glory of his country, his own reputation? The Bavarian
Elector, in his nonage, or, rather, in a sort of subjection to his
Ministers, and dull to the biddings of honour, may give himself up
as a slave to the imperious domination of the House of Austria,
and kiss the hand which oppresses his father: I pardon it to his
youth and his ineptitude. But is that the example for me to
follow? No, dear sister; you think too nobly to give me such green
advice. Is liberty--that precious prerogative--to be less dear to
the sovereign in the eighteenth century than it was to Roman
patricians of old? And where is it said that Brutus and Cato
should carry magnanimity farther than princes and kings? Firmness
consists in resisting misfortune; but only cowards submit to the
yoke, bear patiently their chains, and support oppression
tranquilly. Never, my dear sister, could I resolve upon such
ignominy.
"If I had followed only my own inclinations I should have ended it
at once, after that unfortunate battle which I lost. But I felt
that this would be weakness, and that it behoved me to repair the
evil which had happened. My attachment to the State awoke; I said
to myself, it is not in seasons of prosperity that it is rare to
find defenders, but in adversity. I made it a point of honour with
myself to redress all that had got out of square, in which I was
not unsuccessful, not even in the Lansitz (after those Zittau
deserters) last of all. But no sooner do I hasten this way to face
new enemies than Winterfield was beaten and killed near Gorlitz,
than the French entered the heart of my States, than the Swedes
blockaded Stettin. Now there is nothing effective left for me to
do; there are too many enemies. Were I even to succeed in beating
two armies, the third would crush me. The enclosed note will show
you what I am still about to try; it is the last attempt.
"The gratitude, the tender affection which I feel towards you,
that friendship, true as the hills, constrains me to deal openly
with you. No, my divine sister, I shall conceal nothing from you
that I intend to do; all my thoughts, all my resolutions shall be
open and known to you in time. I will precipitate nothing; but
also it will be impossible for me to change my sentiments.
"As for you, my incomparable sister, I have not the heart to turn
you from your resolves. We think alike, and I cannot condemn in
you the sentiments which I daily entertain. Life has been given to
us as a benefit; when it ceases to be such.... I have nobody left
in this world to attach me to it but you. My friends, the
relations I loved most, are in the grave; in short, I have lost
everything. If you take the resolution which I have taken, we end
together our misfortunes and our unhappiness; and it will be the
turn of them who remain in this world to provide for the concerns
falling to their charge, and to bear the weight which has lain on
us so long. These, my adorable sister, are sad reflections, but
suitable to my present condition.
"But it is time to end this long, dreary letter, which treats
almost of nothing but my own affairs. I have had some leisure, and
have used it to open on you a heart filled with admiration and
gratitude towards you. Yes, my adorable sister, if Providence
troubled itself about human affairs, you ought to be the happiest
person in the Universe. Your not being such confirms me in the
sentiments expressed in the end of my _epitre_. In conclusion,
believe that I adore you, and that I would give my life a thousand
times to serve you. These are the sentiments which will animate me
to the last breath of my life; being, my beloved sister, ever your
"F."