The last emperors of Germany were called Kaisers. Although this German title of monarch in German-speaking countries was applied to emperors of all times and peoples, in other European states this term was used in relation to only the last three representatives of the dynasty of Swabian origin (southwest Germany, the upper reaches of the Danube and the Rhine) of the Hohenzollerns - Wilhelm I, Frederick III and Wilhelm II.
Difficult birth
Kaiser Wilhelm II was not only the last monarch of this dynasty, but also the last German emperor in general. This person was very complex. The first child of eight children of Frederick of Prussia and the English Princess Victoria was born as a result of a difficult birth, which was so difficult that the future German Kaiser Wilhelm II remained flawed for life, with severe physical disabilities.
The left arm was injured and remained shorter than the right by 15 cm. A rupture of the brachial nerve and torticollis added to the list of ailments acquired at birth. The child was exposedcontinuous painful procedures and operations.
Character Building
Naturally, the attention to him from all the dynastic relatives was increased - he was pampered. In addition, the crowned parents compensated for physical shortcomings with an excellent comprehensive education. And it is not at all surprising that the last German Kaiser Wilhelm II had a character not just difficult, but terrible - he was arrogant, arrogant and vengeful. His egoism, according to contemporaries, had "crystalline hardness." This monster plunged Europe into the First World War. Numerous photos captured the face of this cruel man for posterity.
Year of the Three Emperors
Born in 1859, already in 1888 he becomes emperor. The kind Kaiser Wilhelm I, ruled by the "iron chancellor" Otto von Bismarck, dies in 1888, which in the history of Germany was called the "year of the three emperors." His son Frederick III of Prussia was Kaiser for only 99 days, as he died suddenly of laryngeal cancer. June 15, 1888 Wilhelm II - a man with high self-esteem, unbending faith in his genius and the ability to change the world - ascended the German throne.
Rushing to power
Before, the fanatical desire to be the first in everything was hampered by physical handicaps and psychological difficulties. After the coronation, passions broke out. Ministers were forbidden to even think for themselves.
Bismarck, before whom Wilhelm I bowed, was dismissed,many laws adopted by the builder of a united Germany were repealed, which had very deplorable consequences (especially the repeal of the law against the socialists). In a short time, the party of the new Kaiser, demanding a change in the state structure, gained unprecedented power and strength. This could not ultimately lead to the collapse of the state.
Militarist
The economy created by Bismarck made Germany the leading country in Europe by the end of the century. The Kaiser's appetites flared up, he began to reorganize, equip and increase the army.
The military budget was increased by 18 million marks, the size of the army increased by 18 thousand people. This could not but frighten Russia and England, who recoiled from Germany. The German Kaiser Wilhelm was left without allies. In the unleashed war, only Austria-Hungary supported him. Using the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, he declared war on Russia and England, and then on the whole of Europe.
Reckless and flimsy adventurer
But with the outbreak of hostilities, the last German emperor somehow quickly lost interest in the massacre he started and by the beginning of 1915 did not interfere in anything. The generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff waged war with all of Europe. The November Revolution broke out in Germany on November 4, 1918. The empire came to an end, Wilhelm was removed from power, and he and his family fled to the Netherlands.
They wanted to try him as a war criminal, but the queen of this country, Wilhelmina, flatly refused to extradite him. He lived for another 20 years, sincerely rejoicing at every action of the Nazis, he bombarded Hitler with congratulatory telegrams. In his castle of Dorne, he died on June 4, 1941 and did not see the defeat of "great Germany".
Coin minting
Under Otto von Bismarck, who was considered the "architect" of a united Germany, not only was the Empire created, the economy developed, a single currency appeared in this country.
Kaiser Wilhelm I's silver coins were minted after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. They were minted from 1873 to 1919. With the introduction of the Reichsmark in 1924, silver coins were demonetized.
Tribute to grandson to grandfather
Germans, like other nations, honor the memory of historical figures. The Kaiser Wilhelm Church in Berlin is a kind of monument to the first and last emperors of Germany. Its other short name is Gedechtniskirche, and the Berliners nicknamed it "hollow tooth". The cult Protestant building was erected according to the project of Franz Schwechten. This is a tribute to the memory of the grandson of the grandfather. The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was built in 1891-1895. For a long time it remained the highest in Berlin - it rises to 113 meters.
Restoration of a church destroyed by an air raid
The original building was completely destroyed by Allied aircraft on November 23, 1943. But the memory of her was so dear to Berliners that when the city authorities decided to build a new building in its place, they stood up for the church. All the newspapers were inundated with angry and indignant letters. The protest tooksuccess. The Kaiser Wilhelm Church was reconstructed according to the design of Egon Eiermann. The ruins of a huge 68-meter tower were preserved, and around them the architect built modern structures, in particular, another octagonal tower topped with a cross and consisting of rich blue honeycombs. The bell on the tower rings every hour.
Modern architecture
The originality of the restored religious building allowed the guests of the capital to call it the “Blue Church”. Countless glasses of this color are inserted into concrete honeycombs, inside of which there is a light source. The entire new tower acquires a mysterious blue glow. The light coming from outside and burning inside the building creates an amazing effect. The soaring almost 5-meter figure of Christ with outstretched arms, as it were, ascended above the stylized altar. The new church was consecrated in 1961.
The weekly organ concerts held here are extremely popular with Berliners and guests of the German capital. The Kaiser Wilhelm Church, located on Breitscheidplatz, after reconstruction has become a kind of memorial of destruction and creation. The ruins of the old tower are left as a warning monument.
Another memorable object
The memory of the last German emperor is preserved in one more place. There is a Kaiser Wilhelm Canal in the country. The Kiel Canal is navigable and connects the B altic and North Seas. Its length from the mouth of the Elbe to the Bay of Kiel is 98 kilometers. The width is100 meters, which makes it possible for battleships to proceed from the B altic Sea to the North Sea not around Denmark, but directly. The canal, which Kaiser Wilhelm II officially launched in June 1895, is currently very actively used. It is open for international use.
