CHAPTER VIII.
The State of Frederic the Great (1700).—The kingdom of the Hohenzollerns, its small size; character of the people and princes—Childhood of Frederic—Opposition to his father—Catastrophe—Training and its influence on his character—His marriage and relations with women—Residence in Rheinsberg—His character when he became King—Striking contrast between his poetic warmth and his inexorable severity—Inward change in the course of the first Silesian war—Loss of the friends of his youth—The literary period till 1766—His poetry, historical writings, and literary versatility—Seven years of iron labour—His method of carrying on war, and heroic struggle—Admiration of Germans and foreigners—His sufferings and endurance—Extracts from Frederic's Letters from 1767-1762—Principles of his government—Improvement of Silesia—Difference betwixt the Prussian and Austrian government—Feeling of duty in the Prussian officials—Acquisition of West Prussia—Miserable condition in 1772—Agriculture of Frederic—His last years