Kaiser wilhelm 2nd biography template

Kaiser Wilhelm II  ©Wilhelm was the last German emperor (kaiser) and king of Prussia, whose bellicose policies helped to bring about World War One.

Wilhelm was born on 27 January 1859 in Berlin, the eldest child of Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia and Victoria, daughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. A difficult birth left Wilhelm with a withered arm, which he always tried to conceal. In 1881, after a period of military service, Wilhelm married Augusta Victoria, Princess of Schleswig-Holstein, and they had seven children.

In 1888, Wilhelm's father succeeded as Frederick III. He died shortly afterwards, making Wilhelm kaiser at the age of 29. Although he had previously admired the great German statesman Otto von Bismarck, within two years Wilhelm had forced his resignation. He was a strong believer in increasing the strength of the German armed forces, particularly the navy. His policies towards Britain were contradictory. He alienated Britain with his naval expansion and a policy of aggressive German colonial expansion, and also supported the Boers in their fight against the British. But he was also closely related to the British royal family and was particularly fond of his grandmother, Queen Victoria.

Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo in 1914, Wilhelm encouraged the Austrians to adopt an uncompromising line against Serbia, effectively writing them a 'blank cheque' for German support in the event of war. He appeared not to realise the chain reaction this would trigger. Russia and her allies France and Britain entered the war against Germany and Austria. Wilhelm tried to scale back the mobilisation of Germany's armed forces, but was prevented by the Germany military. While theoretically supreme commander, Wilhelm found himself excluded from military decisions, but crippled chances of a compromise peace by encouraging the grandiose war aims of certain generals and politicians.

In

Arrogant, extremely vain, and always seeking praise, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany enjoyed a life of frivolity. His former chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, once remarked that the Kaiser considered every day as his birthday.

Hot head

Wilhelm II, King George V of Britain and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia were all cousins. George and Wilhelm were both grandsons of Queen Victoria, and Nicholas’s wife, Empress Alexandra, was Victoria’s granddaughter. They met, as a threesome, only twice. Winston Churchill described Wilhelm as a ‘very ordinary, vain but on the whole a well-meaning man’. Queen Victoria’s judgement was somewhat harsher, calling her grandson ‘such a hot-headed, conceited and wrong-headed young man’.

Much to Wilhelm’s delight, however, Victoria made him an honorary admiral of the Royal Navy. Gushing with thanks, Wilhelm promised he would always take an interest in Britain’s fleet as if it was his own.

Born on 27 January 1859 with a paralyzed left arm, considerably shorter than the right, Wilhelm needed help with eating and dressing throughout his life, and went to great lengths to hide his disability. He had, for example, a specially made fork to help him with his food. He owned over 30 castles throughout Germany and would visit them all occasionally, indulging in socialising and hunting – he was capable of killing a thousand or more animals in the course of a weekend’s hunt.

A lover of all things military and a collector of uniforms (he owned 600, many he designed himself), Wilhelm’s knowledge of military matters was little more than that of an over-enthusiastic schoolchild. His knowledge of political matters was equally shallow, having neither the enthusiasm nor attention span to read lengthy or detailed reports.

Wilhelm’s power, he firmly believed, was God-given. Any criticism of him or his policies was, in effect, an act of blasphemy. Germany, he said, ‘must follow me wherever I go.’

The Kaiser’s War

Kaiser Wilhelm II (1859-1941), Germany's last Kaiser, was born in Potsdam in 1859, the son of Frederick III and Victoria, daughter of Queen Victoria.

Wilhelm's upbringing was strict and authoritarian.  He was educated first at the Kassel Gymnasium and then at the University of Bonn.

Wilhelm became emperor of Germany in 1888 following the death of Frederick II.  At the time of his accession Otto von Bismarck was still German Chancellor; however he was effectively dismissed from office by Wilhelm II two years later.  The elderly Bismarck proved unable - or unwilling - to manipulate the new Kaiser as he had his predecessor.

Wilhelm was an overtly militaristic man, and believed fervently in increasing the strength of Germany's armed forces.  In particular he was keen to develop a German navy the equal of Britain's Royal Navy, encouraged by Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz; the latter desire prompted the Liberal administration of the 1900's to finance rearmament of the Royal Navy.

Wilhelm's policy towards Britain was by turns contradictory.  Whilst supporting South Africa during the Second Boer War of 1899-1902, he attempted a reconciliation shortly afterwards.  He held a senior position within the British armed forces; and he confessed that he could not envisage a war with Britain.  Yet he publicly criticised King Edward VII, whom he described as Satan.  Even after war was declared in August 1914 he wrote that war would never have occurred had Queen Victoria, who died in 1901, still held the British throne.

Wilhelm suffered a nervous breakdown in 1908, consequently playing a lesser role in the government of Germany for the following few years.  Wilhelm was, however, no friend of democracy.

Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary on 28 June 1914, Wilhelm and his Chancellor, Theobald v

German Emperor from 1888 to 1918

"Kaiser Wilhelm II" redirects here. For other uses, see Wilhelm II (disambiguation) and Kaiser Wilhelm II (disambiguation).

Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 1859 – 4 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as the Hohenzollern dynasty's 300-year rule of Prussia.

Born during the reign of his granduncle Frederick William IV of Prussia, Wilhelm was the son of Prince Frederick William and Victoria, Princess Royal. Through his mother, he was the eldest of the 42 grandchildren of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. In March 1888, Wilhelm's father, Frederick William, ascended the German and Prussian thrones as Frederick III. Frederick died just 99 days later, and his son succeeded him as Wilhelm II.

In March 1890, the young Kaiser dismissed longtime Chancellor Otto von Bismarck and assumed direct control over his nation's policies, embarking on a bellicose "New Course" to cement Germany's status as a leading world power. Over the course of his reign, the German colonial empire acquired new territories in China and the Pacific (such as Jiaozhou Bay, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Caroline Islands) and bec