History of Prussia

Prussia was the home of the pagan spiritual leader Krivis and the pagan center of Romuva that was dear to the Baltic people.
Sudovia and Galindia were two of the twelve original Prussian lands. Not actually a separate language, Sudovian, Jatvingian has however been documented in writing.
( www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Sudovian-language )

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31-1-1141
Pope Innocent II authorized Bishop Henry of Moravia to preach Catholicism in Prussia.
(LHC, 1/31/03)
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~1200 :
Following Prussian attacks on Polish lands, the Catholic Poles invited German religious-military orders to attack Prussia. (H of L, 1931, p.25)
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7-2-1249
The Christburg Peace Treaty forced the Prussians to recognize the rule of the Teutonic Knights. Within about 50 years the Teutonic Knights and Knights of the Cross had overcome most of Prussia and established German as the dominant culture and language. The German orders then turned to Lithuania. (H of L, 1931, p.25)(LHC, 2/7/03)
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1255
Konigsberg (Kaliningrad) was founded on the Baltic Sea by the Bohemian King Otakar II, who came to help Teutonic Knights during their conquest of Prussia disguised as the Christianization effort called the Northern Crusades. It was annexed by Russia in 1945.
(Econ, 5/14/05, p.55)(www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Konigsberg)
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16-2-1270
In the Karusa Ice war in Estonia, Lithuanian forces defeated the Livonian Knights of the Cross.
(LHC, 2/16/03)
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5-3-1279
Lithuanians overcame Livonian forces at Aizkraukle.
(LHC, 3/5/03)
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30-3-1298
Duke Vytenis joined with Riga and its archbishop against the Livonian order.
(LHC, 3/30/03)
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10-2-1324
The pope officially chastised the Knights of the Cross for ill treatment of Catholics and for pushing pagans away from Christianity.
(LHC, 2/10/03)
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23-3-1330
Riga surrendered to the Livonian Order.
(LHC, 3/23/03)
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25-2-1336
The Knights of the Cross sieged the Pilenai Castle in Samogitia. The defenders burned all their goods and committed suicide.
(LHC, 2/25/03)
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21-3-1361
Grand duke Kestutis was captured by the Knights of the Cross.
(LHC, 3/21/03)
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11-4-1370
Frederick I the Warlike, elector of Saxony, was born.
(HN, 4/11/98)
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21-9-1372
Frederik I van Hohenzollern, monarch of Brandenburg (1417-40), was born.
(MC, 9/21/01)
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13-3-1401
The 1st Samogitian uprising supported by Vytautas took place against the German knights. (LHC, 3/13/03)
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2-3-1402
In Marienburg Svitrigaila crossed over to the Knights of the Cross and promised to uphold the Salyn treaty that was broken by Vytautas.
(LHC, 3/1/03)
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15-7-1410
Lithuanian-Polish forces defeated the Teutonic Knights at the Battle of Tannenberg, Prussia, thereby halting the Knights’ eastward expansion along the Baltic and hastening their decline. Vytautas and Jogaila with hired mercenaries from Belarus along with Tartars and Czechs defeated the Teutonic Knights between Grunvald (Zalgiriai) and Tannenberg southeast of Malburg. Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen and many of his nobles were killed. The war officially ended with the Treaty of Thorn in which the Knights gave up Zemaitija to Vytautas.
(COE)(H of L, 1931, p.52)(DrEE, 11/9/96, p.6)
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21-9-1415
Frederick III, German Emperor (1440-1493), was born in Innsbruck Austria.
(MC, 9/21/01)
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6-3-1454
Casimir proclaimed the attachment of Prussia to Polish rule. This began a 13-year war over Prussia (1454-1466).
(LHC,3/6/03)
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19-10-1466
The peace of Torun ended the 13-year War of the Cities (1454-1466), between the Teutonic knights and their own disaffected subjects in Prussia. The Peace of Thorn (Torún) ended the war between the Teutonic knights (a German military and religious order) and their subjects in Prussia, led by King Casimir IV (1427-1492) of Poland. Poland was given Pomerelia and West Prussia, and the knights retained East Prussia, with a new capital at Königsberg (Kaliningrad). The knights, formerly strictly a German order, were forced to accept Poles as members and their grand master became a vassal of the Polish king.
(HN, 10/19/98)(http://reference.allrefer.com/encyclopedia/T/TeutonKn.html)
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1506
Copernicus (1473-1543), Polish-born astronomer, was appointed canon of church properties in the Prussian diocese of Ermland.
(ON, 2/11, p.5)
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1512
Copernicus, Polish-born astronomer, wrote his manuscript “The Little Commentary,” in which he suggested that the earth’s apparent immobility was due to a “false appearance” and a sun-centered cosmos would resolve many astronomical inconsistencies.
(ON, 2/11, p.5)
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1519
Prussia experienced a monetary crises.
(ON, 2/11, p.6)
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8-4-1525
Albert von Brandenburg, the leader of the Teutonic Order, assumed the title “Duke of Prussia” and passed the first laws of the Protestant church, making Prussia a Protestant state.
(HN, 4/8/99)
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24-9-1545
Albrecht von Brandenburg, archbishop, monarch, founder of The Brandenburg Concerts of Mainz, died at 55.
(MC, 9/24/01)
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19-5-1608
The Protestant states formed the Evangelical Union of Lutherans and Calvinists under the direction of the elector of Brandenburg.
(HN, 5/19/99)
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1640-1688
Elector Friedrich Wilhelm acquired a collection of paintings by Titian, Rubens, Rembrandt and others at his home in Oranien. His nephew was Frederick the Great.
(WSJ, 7/29/98, p.A13)
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1640-1945
In 1955 Stanford Prof. Gordon A. Craig (1913-2005) authored “The Politics of the Prussian Army, 1640-1945.”
(SFC, 11/9/05, p.B11)
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17-1-1656
Prussian Duke Frederick Wilhelm withdrew ties with Lithuania and Poland and acknowledged vassal status with Sweden.
(LHC, 1/17/03)
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1678
Frederick William, Brandenburg’s Great Elector, gave Bielefeld the privilege of certifying the quality of local linen. This cemented its position as a center for the textile trade.
(Econ, 4/14/12, p.30)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandenburg)
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8-11-1685
Fredrick William of Brandenburg issued the Edict of Potsdam, offering Huguenots refuge.
(HN, 11/6/98)

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15-8-1688
Frederick-William I, king of Prussia (1713-1740), was born.
(MC, 8/15/02)
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18-1-1701
Frederick, the elector of Brandenburg, became the king of Prussia.
(HN, 1/18/99)
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1701
German artisans created an amber room for King Frederick I of Prussia. He presented it as a gift to Peter the Great in 1712 [see 1712, 1716].
(SFC, 3/22/97, p.A16)(SFC, 4/30/98, p.E6)(WSJ, 1/20/00, p.A20)
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24-1-1712
Frederick II (d.1786), Frederick the Great, the Hohenzollern King of Prussia (1740-1786), was born. He was noted for his social reforms and leading Prussia in military victories.
(WUD, 1994, p.565)(HN, 1/24/99)(WSJ, 4/27/00, p.A24)(MC, 1/24/02)
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1712
King Frederick I of Prussia presented his amber room, made as a gift by German artisans in 1701, to Peter the Great [1716]. Catherine the Great later added four marble panels from Florence, that were inlaid with precious stones. It was moved to Konigsburg in 1945 and then lost during WW II.
(SFC, 3/22/97, p.A16)(SFC, 4/30/98, p.E6)(WSJ, 1/20/00, p.A20)

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25-2-1713
Frederik I (55), King of Prussia (1701-13), died.
(MC, 2/25/02)
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1716
Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm I gave the Czar of Russia an elaborately carved amber chamber. In exchange, he received his wish: 55 very tall Russian soldiers. German troops dismantled it in 1941 and took it to Koenigsburg where it disappeared. In 1979 the Soviet government initiated a reconstruction, which was unveiled in 2003. [see 1701, 1712]
(AP, 5/13/03)
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22-3-1719
Frederick William abolished serfdom on crown property in Prussia.
(AP, 3/22/99)
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17-9-1730
Friedrich von Steuben, Prussian and US inspector-general of Washington's army, was born.
(MC, 9/17/01)
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6-11-1730
Hans Hermann von Katte, Prussian lieutenant, was beheaded.
(MC, 11/6/01)
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22-6-1740
King Frederick II of Prussia ended torture and guaranteed religion and freedom of the press.
(MC, 6/22/02)
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1740
Frederick II (28) ascended to the throne.
(WSJ, 4/27/00, p.A24)
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1740
Frederick the Great awarded what is believed to be the first medal for combat bravery, the Pour le Merite, nicknamed the Blue Max.
(WSJ, 4/23/99, A1)
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1740s
Frederick the Great built a summer palace in Potsdam named Sans-souci (without worries).
(SFEC, 7/27/97, p.T11)
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11-6-1741
Austria ceded most of Silesia to Prussia by Treaty of Breslau.
(AP, 6/11/03)
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17-5-1742
Frederick great (Emperor of Prussia) beat Austrians.
(MC, 5/17/02)
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4-6-1745
Frederick the Great of Prussia defeated the Austrians & Saxons.
(MC, 6/4/02)
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25-12-1745
Prussia and Austria signed the Treaty of Dresden. This gave much of Silesia to the Prussians.
(MC, 12/25/01)
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5-9-1750
A decree issued in Paderborn, Prussia, allowed for annual search of all Jewish homes for stolen or "doubtful" goods.
(MC, 9/5/01)
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25-3-1753
Voltaire left the court of Frederik II of Prussia.
(MC, 3/25/02)
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12-11-1755
Gerhard JD von Scharnhorst, Prussian military minister of War (1807-10), was born.
(MC, 11/12/01)
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1756-1763
The Seven Years War. France and Great Britain clashed both in Europe and in North America. In 2000 "Crucible of War" by Fred Anderson was published. France, Russia, Austria, Saxony, Sweden and Spain stood against Britain, Prussia and Hanover. Britain financed Prussia to block France in Europe while her manpower was occupied in America.
(V.D.-H.K.p.223)(SFC, 7/7/96, BR p.7)(WSJ, 2/10/00, p.A16)
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6-5-1757
Battle at Prague: Frederik II of Prussia beat emperor's army.
(MC, 5/6/02)
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18-6-1757
Battle at Kolin, Bohemia: Austrian army beat Prussia.
(MC, 6/18/02)

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3-9-1757
Charles X, Duke of Prussia, was born in Versailles, France.
(MC, 9/3/01)

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5-11-1757
Frederick II of Prussia defeated the French at Rosbach in the Seven Years War.
(HN, 11/5/98)

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22-11-1757
Austrians defeated Prussians at Breslau in the Seven Years War.
(HN, 11/22/98)
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25-8-1758
The Prussian army defeated the invading Russians at the Battle of Zorndorf. Thousands were killed.
(HN, 8/25/98)(chblue.com, 8/25/01)
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23-6-1760
Austrians defeated the Prussians at Landshut, Germany.
(HN, 6/23/98)
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15-8-1760
Frederick II (1712-1786), king of Prussia, defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Liegnitz.
(HN, 8/15/98)(WUD, 1994, p.565)
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3-11-1760
Following the Russian capture of Berlin, Frederick II of Prussia defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Torgau (Germany).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Torgau)

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5-8-1762
Russia, Prussia and Austria signed a treaty agreeing on the partition of Poland.
(HN, 8/5/98)
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1763
Frederick the Great took over Die Konigliche Porzelan-Manufaktur. The royal porcelain factory was privatized by the state of Berlin in 2006.
(Econ, 5/23/09, p.65)

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1770
Prussia issued the first covered bonds. They were paid back from the issuer’s cash flow and were secured against a pool of assets.
(Econ, 9/13/08, p.80)

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7-8-1779
Carl Ritter, cofounder of modern science of geography, was born in Quedlinberg, Prussia.
(MC, 8/7/02)
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13-9-1779
Frederick II of Prussia issued a manifesto in which he bemoaned the increased use of coffee and called for more consumption of beer.
(SFC, 1/30/99, p.D3)
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1786
Frederick the Great (b.1712) died. In 2000 Giles MacDonogh authored “Frederick the Great.”
(WSJ, 4/27/00, p.A24)

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20-4-1792
France declared war on Austria, Prussia, and Sardinia, marking the start of the French Revolutionary wars.
(AP, 4/20/97)(HN, 4/20/98)

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2-9-1792
Verdun, France, surrendered to the Prussian Army.
(HN, 9/2/98)

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23-1-1793
Prussia and Russia signed an accord on the 2nd partition of Lithuania and Poland. The 2nd partition of Poland. Polish patriots had attempted to devise a new constitution which was recognized by Austria and Prussia, but Russia did not recognize it and invaded. Prussia in turn invaded and the two agreed to a partition that left only the central portion of Poland independent.
(WUD, 1994, p.1677)(LHC, 1/23/03)
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23-7-1793
The French garrison at Mainz, Germany, fell to the Prussians.
(HN, 7/23/98)
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28-11-1794
Friedrich WLGA von Steuben (64), Prussian-US inspector-general of Washington’s army, died in Oneida, NY. Baron von Steuben, a former Prussian captain, had arrived in Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 1777, and despite false credentials, was hired to drill and train Washington’s Continental Army. His manual of arms, known as the “Blue Book,” shaped basic training for American recruits for generations to come. In 2008 Paul Lockhart authored “The Drillmaster of Valley Forge: The Baron de Steuben and the Making of the American Army.”
(WSJ, 11/8/08, p.W9)(WSJ, 11/8/08, p.W9)
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24-10-1795
Russia, Austria and Prussia held a convention in Petersburg to finalize the 3rd division of the Polish-Lithuanian Republic. Most of Lithuania with Vilnius went to Russia, Warsaw and the left bank of the Nemunas River went to Prussia and Cracow went to Austria. King Stanislovas Augustas of Poland was forced from his capital and moved to Grodno (Gardinas).
(Voruta #27-28, 7/1996, p.5)(MC, 10/24/01)
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15-1-1797
In St. Petersburg Russia, Prussia and Austria signed and act that terminated the Lithuanian-Polish state.
(LHC, 1/15/03)
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26-10-1800
Helmuth Karl von Moltke, Prussian Field Marshal and Count, was born. His reorganization of the Prussian Army led to military victories that allowed the unification of Germany. His father was a German officer serving in the Danish army. His greatest innovation was the creation of a fighting force that could mobilize quickly and strike when and where it chose. He was one of the first generals to grasp the importance of railroads in moving troops. In 1995 Otto Friedrich authored a biography of the Moltke family line from Bismarck to Hitler: “Blood and Iron: From Bismarck to Hitler the von Moltke Family’s Impact on German History.”
(WSJ, 11/7/95, p.A-20)(HN, 10/26/98)
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25-2-1803
The 1,800 sovereign German states united into 60 states.
(MC, 2/25/02)
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1805
Prussia sent Baron Wilhelm von Humboldt as envoy to the Vatican, the first Protestant state to do so.
(Econ, 7/21/07, p.59)
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1805
Napoleon defeated Austria and Prussia. In 1997 Alistair Horne wrote: "How Far from Austerlitz? Napoleon 1805-1815."
(WSJ, 7/10/96, p.A16)(WSJ, 5/19/97, p.A16)
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14-10-1806
The forces of French Emperor Napoleon I defeated the Prussians in the twin battles of Jena and Auerstadt.
(AP, 10/14/07)
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25-6-1807
Napoleon I of France and Russian Czar Alexander I met near Tilsit, in northern Prussia, to discuss terms for ending war between their empires.
(AP, 6/25/07)
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7-7-1807
Napoleon I of France and Czar Alexander I of Russia signed a treaty at Tilsit ending war between their empires. It divided Europe among themselves and isolated Britain.
(HN, 7/7/98)(AP, 7/7/07)
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9-3-1812
Swedish Pomerania was seized by Napoleon.
(HN, 3/9/98)
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11-3-1812
Citizenship was granted to Prussian Jews.
(MC, 3/12/02)
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28-2-1813
Russia and Prussia formed the Kalisz union against Napoleon.
(LHC,2/28/03)
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4-3-1813
The Russians fighting against Napoleon reached Berlin. The French garrison evacuated the city without a fight.
(HN, 3/4/99)
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23-8-1813
At the Battle of Grossbeeren Prussians under Von Bulow repulsed the French.
(MC, 8/23/02)
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26-8-1813
till : 27-8-1813
The Battle of Dresden was Napoleon’s last major victory against the allied forces of Austria, Russia and Prussia.
(www.napoleonguide.com/battle_dresden.htm)
--------------------
16:19 -10-1813
In the Battle at Leipzig (aka Battle of the Nations) Napoleon faced Prussia, Austria and Russia and suffered one of his worst defeats.
(DoW, 1999, p.325)
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18-10-1813
The Allies defeated Napoleon Bonaparte at Leipzig.
(HN, 10/18/98)
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1813
Prussia took over Danzig.
(WSJ, 8/31/98, p.A4)
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1813
The Prussians introduced the Iron Cross during the Napoleonic wars.
(WSJ, 4/23/99, A1)
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1814 Sep,
The Congress of Vienna convened in late September and continued to June 8, 1815. Friedrich von Gentz of Austria served as secretary to the Congress. It was held after the banishment of Napoleon to Elba. The congress aimed at territorial resettlement and restoration to power of the crowned heads of Europe with Prince Metternich of Austria as the dominant figure. Viscount Castlereagh and the Duke of Wellington represented Britain. Alexander I stood for Russia. Talleyrand stood for France. Prince von Hardenberg stood for Prussia. In 2007 Adam Zamoyski authored “Rites of Peace: The Fall of Napoleon and the Congress of Vienna.” In 2008 David King authored “Vienna 1814: How the Conquerors of Napoleon Made Love, War and Peace at the Congress of Vienna.
(Econ, 4/14/07, p.94)(www.bartleby.com/65/vi/Vienna-C.html)(SSFC, 4/6/08, Books p.4)
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1815 Apr,
British General Arthur Wellesley, duke of Wellington, began assembling troops at Brussels, Belgium. 73,000 British troops were joined by 33,000 German, Dutch and Belgian troops preparing to face Napoleon. Prussian Gen. Gebhard Leberecht von Blucher gathered an army of 120,000 southeast of Brussels.
(ON, 4/06, p.1)
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16-6-1815
Napoleon defeated the Prussians at the Battle of Ligny, Belgium.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ligny)
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18-6-1815
British and Prussian troops under the Duke of Wellington defeated Napoleon Bonaparte and his forces at the Battle of Waterloo in Belgium. The French elite troops of the Imperial Guard wore bearskins to appear more intimidating. Afterwards Britain established towering bear skin hats for soldiers in ceremonial duties and to guard royal residencies and the Tower of London. Field Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blucher made a short speech to his troops saying that he was pregnant and about to give birth to an elephant. He was taken from the front in protective custody and missed the battle. Napoleon lost over 40,000 men at Waterloo; the British and Belgians lost 15,000; the Prussians lost 7,000. The total losses in 3 days of fighting was later estimated at 91,800. In 2002 Andrew Roberts authored "Napoleon and Wellington." In 2005 Andrew Roberts authored “Waterloo: Napoleon’s Last Gamble.”
(SFEC, 2/28/99, Z1p.10)(WSJ, 9/13/02, p.W10)(Econ, 2/12/05, p.81)(ON, 4/06, p.5)
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26-9-1815
Russia, Prussia and Austria signed a Holy Alliance. "Justice, charity and peace" were to be the precepts that guided the Holy Alliance as envisioned by Czar Alexander I of Russia. The alliance of Russia, Austria and Prussia was formed after the downfall of Napoleon and later all European rulers signed the agreement except the prince regent of Great Britain, the pope and the sultan of Turkey. With no specific aims beyond mutual assistance, the provisions of the Holy Alliance were so vague that it had little effect on European diplomacy. Metternich quietly replaced the entire alliance by the purely political alliance of 20 November, 1815, between Austria, Prussia, Russia and England.
(www.newadvent.org/cathen/07398a.htm)(HNQ, 7/7/98)
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20-11-1815
The treaties known collectively as the 2nd Peace of Paris were concluded. Austria’s chancellor Klemens von Metternich helped create a “Concert of Europe,” a system by which 4-5 big powers kept miscreants in check and managed the affairs of smaller states for over a decade.
(http://tinyurl.com/2sqgp9)(Econ, 6/9/07, p.68)(www.newadvent.org/cathen/07398a.htm)
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5-5-1818
Karl Marx, German philosopher, was born in Prussia. He argued that history was marked by various stages of class struggle and capitalism which had overcome feudalism would in turn be overcome by socialism and the elimination of private property. He and Friedrich Engels founded Communism. Together they wrote "The Communist Manifesto" and "Das Capital."
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R20)(AP, 5/5/97)(HN, 5/5/99)
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12-3-1824
Gustav Robert Kirchoff, physicist, was born in Prussia.
(HN, 3/12/98)(MC, 3/12/02)
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20-7-1824
Alexander Schimmelfennig, Brig. General Union volunteers, was born in Prussia.
(MC, 7/20/02)
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16-11-1831
Karl von Clausewitz (51), Prussian strategist (Campaign 1813), died.
(MC, 11/16/01)
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9-3-1839
Prussian government limited the work week for children to 51 hours.
(MC, 3/9/02)
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6-4-1848
Jews of Prussia were granted equality.
(MC, 4/6/02)
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23-7-1849
German rebels in Baden capitulated to the Prussians.
(HN, 7/23/98)
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2-7-1850
Prussia agreed to pull out of Schleswig and Holstein, Germany.
(HN, 7/2/98)
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8-5-1852
A war between Denmark and Prussia lasted three years (1848–50) and ended only when the Great Powers pressured Prussia into accepting the London Protocol of 1852. This was the revision of an earlier protocol, which had been ratified on August 2, 1850, by the major Germanic powers of Austria and Prussia. The 1852 London Protocol confirmed that the duchies of Schleswig-Holstein should remain undivided.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Protocol)(Econ, 6/23/12, p.20)
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2-7-1856
Prussian private bankers founded Berliner Handels-Gesselschaft. In 1970 the bank merged with Frankfurter Bank and became BHF-Bank.
(Econ, 1/15/11, p.84)(http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berliner_Handels-Gesellschaft)
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25-1-1858
Britain's Princess Victoria (the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert), married Crown Prince Frederick William (the future German Emperor and King of Prussia) at St. James's Palace. The ceremony's tradition-setting music, personally selected by the Princess Royal, included the "Bridal Chorus" from Richard Wagner's "Lohengrin" and the "Wedding March" by Felix Mendelssohn.
(AP, 1/25/08)
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2-1-1861
Frederik Willem IV (b.1795), king of Prussia (1840-61) and Germany (1849-61), died.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_William_IV_of_Prussia)
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23-9-1862
Otto von Bismarck became the 9th Minister President of the Kingdom of Prussia.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck)
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8-10-1862
Otto von Bismarck became German republic chancellor.
(MC, 10/8/01)
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1864
Prussia and Austria snatched Schleswig-Holstein from Denmark. The border was redrawn by plebiscite in 1920. After 1945 Germany and Denmark agreed to recognize the rights of minorities on both sides.
(Econ, 6/2/12, p.66)
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15-4-1865
Otto von Bismarck was elevated to earl.
(MC, 4/15/02)
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2-7-1865
Lili Braun, feminist, socialist writer (Im Schatten Titanen), was born in Prussia.
(SC, 7/2/02)
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8-6-1866
Prussia annexed the region of Holstein.
(HN, 6/8/98)
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15-6-1866
Prussia attacked Austria.
(HN, 6/15/98)
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27-6-1866
The Battle of Langensalza was fought near Bad Langensalza in what is now modern Germany, between the Kingdom of Hanover (Hanoverians) and the Prussians. The Hanoverians won the battle but were then surrounded by a larger and reinforced Prussian army, and, unable to link up with their Bavarian allies to the south, they surrendered. Hanover was annexed after losing a war with Prussia.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Langensalza_%281866%29)(Econ, 6/7/14, p.61)
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23-8-1866
Treaty of Prague ended the Austro-Prussian war.
(MC, 8/23/02)
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19-7-1870
The Franco-Prussian War began. Napoleon declared war on Bismarck. Emperor Napoleon III of France declared war on Germany under Otto von Bismarck. Napoleon was defeated in three months and abdicated.
(WSJ, 3/14/95, p.A-16)(V.D.-H.K.p.260)(AP, 7/19/07)
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6-8-1870
At the Battle at Spicheren: Prussia beat France. Crown Prince Frederick, commanding one of the three Prussian armies invading France, defeated French Marshal MacMahon at Worth and Weissenburg, pushed him out of Alsace, surrounded Strasbourg, and drove on towards Nancy. Two other Prussian armies isolated Marshal Bazaine's forces in Metz.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Spicheren)(www.marxists.org/history/france/paris-commune/timeline.htm)
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18-8-1870
Prussian forces defeated the French at the Battle of Gravelotte during the Franco-Prussian War. French Commander Bazaine's efforts to break his soldiers through the German lines were bloodily defeated at Mars-la-Tour and Gravelotte. The Prussians advanced on Chalons.
(HN, 8/18/98)(www.marxists.org/history/france/paris-commune/timeline.htm)
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1-9-1870
The Prussian army crushed the French under Marshal MacMahon at Sedan, the last battle of the Franco-Prussian War.
(HN, 9/1/99)(PCh, 1992, p.516)
--------------------
2-9-1870
Napoleon III with 80,000 men capitulated to the Prussians at Sedan, France.
(PCh, 1992, p.516)(WSJ, 3/14/95, p.A-16)(HN, 9/2/98)
--------------------
4-9-1870
At news of Sedan, Paris workers invaded the Palais Bourbon and forced the Legislative Assembly to proclaim the fall of the Empire. Emperor Louis Napoleon III was overthrown in a bloodless coup. The 3rd French Republic was proclaimed in Paris and a government of national defense was formed.
(HN, 9/4/98)(ON, 9/06, p.12)(www.marxists.org/history/france/paris-commune/timeline.htm)
--------------------
19-9-1870
Two Prussian armies began a 135-day siege of Paris as the 2nd Empire collapsed. This forced the people of the city to eat Castor and Pollux, the 2 elephants in the zoo.
(PCh, 1992, p.516)(SFC, 4/17/99, p.B3)
--------------------
27-10-1870
The French fortress of Metz surrendered to the Prussian Army.
(HN, 10/27/98)
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8-1-1871
Prussian troops began to bombard Paris during the Franco-Prussian War.
(HN, 1/8/99)
--------------------
22-1-1871
The Paris proletariat and the National Guards held a revolutionary demonstration, initiated by the Blanquists. They demanded the overthrow of the government and the establishment of a Commune. By order of the Government of National Defense, the Breton Mobile Guard, which was defending the Hotel de Ville, opened fire on the demonstrators. After massacring the unarmed workers, the government began preparations to surrender Paris.
(www.marxists.org/history/france/paris-commune/timeline.htm)
--------------------
18-1-1871
William I of Prussia was proclaimed "German Emperor" (which was not the same thing as "Emperor of Germany") in Versailles, France.
(AP, 1/18/07)
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28-1-1871
France, under a provisional republican government, continued the war against Germany, but was forced to surrender in the Franco-Prussian War. Surrounded by Prussian troops and suffering from famine, the French army in Paris surrendered. During the siege, balloons were used to keep contact with the outside world.
(V.D.-H.K.p.260)(AP, 1/28/98)(HN, 1/28/99)
--------------------
26-2-1871
France and Prussia signed a preliminary peace treaty at Versailles.
(HN, 2/26/99)
--------------------
1-3-1871
Germans paraded down the Champs-Elysses, Paris, France during the Franco-Prussian War.
(HN, 3/1/99)(WSJ, 3/14/95, p.A-16)
--------------------
21-3-1871
Otto von Bismarck became the 1st Chancellor of the German Empire.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck)
--------------------
1871
The German states became a nation. Germany went on to adopt the mark as its common currency.
(WSJ, 1/15/96, p. A-10)(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R42)
--------------------
1872
Hawaii’s King Kamehameha V asked the Kaiser of Prussia to send a music teacher for the Royal Hawaiian Band. Henry Berger, a Prussian military band leader, arrived and led the group for 43 years. He was later considered the father of Hawaiian music.
(WSJ, 3/10/05, p.A1)
--------------------
1880
Bavaria and Prussia introduced Spelling reform. Chancellor Bismarck threatened civil servants with increased fines if the new system was used.
(Econ, 8/21/04, p.45)
--------------------
13-4-1882
An anti-Semitic League formed in Prussia.
(MC, 4/13/02)
--------------------
29-5-1883
Albrecht of Prussia (73), mistress of John van Rossum, died.
(SC, 5/29/02)
--------------------
1883
Germany under Chancellor Otto von Bismarck adopted the first compulsory health insurance program on a national scale.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R25)
--------------------
1889
Prussia under Chancellor Otto von Bismarck adopted old-age and invalidity pensions. Prussian average life expectancy was about 45.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R25)(Econ, 6/27/09, p.18)
--------------------
20-3-1890
Germany’s Kaiser Wilhelm II fired republic chancellor Otto Von Bismarck.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck)
--------------------
24-4-1891
Helmuth Karl Bernhard Graf von Moltke (b.1800), German Field Marshal, died. He was the chief of staff of the Prussian Army for thirty years and became later regarded as one of the great strategists of the latter 19th century.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmuth_von_Moltke_the_Elder)
--------------------
30-7-1898
Otto von Bismarck (b.1815), German-Prussian statesman and former "Iron" chancellor (1871-1890), died. He held the German social security system as his greatest accomplishment. In 1986 Lothar Gall authored “Bismarck.” In 2011 Jonathan Steinberg authored “Bismarck: A Life.”
(WUD, 1994, p.151)(WSJ, 6/23/07, p.P10)(Econ, 4/2/11, p.80)
--------------------

2-8-1914
Russian troops invade Eastern Prussia.
(MC, 8/2/02)
--------------------
22-8-1914
Von Ludendorff and von Hindenburg moved into East Prussia enroute to Russia.
(MC, 8/22/02)
--------------------
1915
Hans Leip, in training for the Prussian Guard, authored the poem “Song of a Young Sentry.” It reflected his recent meetings with two women named Lili and Marlene. In 1938 Norbert Schultze of Berlin put it to music. The composition was then recorded by cabaret chanteuse Lale Anderson and became hugely as the song “Lili Marlene.” In 2008 Liel Leibovitz and Matthew Miller authored “Lili Marlene: The Soldier’s Song of World War II.”
(WSJ, 11/8/08, p.W8)
--------------------
28-11-1918
Kaiser Wilhelm of Prussia and Germany, abdicated.
(MC, 11/28/01)
--------------------
27-2-1920
The Lithuanian government offered the representatives of the National Council of Prussian Lithuania assent to cooptation in the Lithuanian government. They co-opted March 20.
(LHC, 2/27/03)
--------------------
10-3-1927
Prussia lifted its Nazi ban, Hitler was allowed to speak in public.
(HN, 3/10/98)
--------------------
28-9-1928
Prussia forbade a speech by Adolf Hitler.
(MC, 9/28/01)
--------------------
3-5-1929
Prussia banned anti-fascists.
(MC, 5/3/02)
--------------------
24-4-1932
In German national elections the NSDAP/NAZI won 36.3% in Prussia.
(MC, 4/24/02)
--------------------
11-4-1933
Hermann Goering became premier of Prussia.
(MC, 4/11/02)