Talk:Frederick the Great

Reading of a letter regarding the Polish territories

Subs added

Hi there, this is a subtitled video reading of Frederick the Great reassuring a Polish magnate of his good intentions regarding Poland's administration, in 1745. i thought this might be interesting contextual material to add, both as a rather disengenuous communication and to demonstrate the need for the Prussian administration to communicate with Poland in Latin; but wanted to ask first. Jim Killock (talk) 15:45, 29 November 2024 (UTC)

It seems like it could work as an external link at the end. Wtfiv (talk) 17:44, 29 November 2024 (UTC)

Holy Roman Empire in Infobox

Deleted description of Prussia as part of the Holy Roman Empire from the Infobox. The status of Prussia is a bit more complicated to warrant a simple statement in the box. Berlin did lie within the Prussia's relationship to the Holy Roman Emperor is more complex. Berlin lies within the Margraviate of Brandenburg, which was technically part of the empire, but it had been incorporated within the Kingdom of Prussia, whose official status was ambiguous. This tension, represented by the King in Prussia/King of Prussia distinction goes beyond an infobox mention, which makes the case look misleadingly clearcut. Wtfiv (talk) 17:28, 22 February 2025 (UTC)

Recent edits on Huguenot influence

Recently added material was reworked and shortened. The role of the Hugunots is fascinating, but the material appeared to make more claims than is in the source

The main source cited, which is already in the bibliography is the very old Lavisse, pg. 7-11 is linked and properly formatted. Material that was not supported by the source was removed. For example, Lavisse does not go into the history of the Huguenot in detail. Lavisse doesn't use the word Huguenot to describe the tutors, but kept it in the edit as it is descriptive of French Calvinism and provides a link. Lavisse also does not go into detail on Huguenot influence on Frederick's spirituality and beliefs. The major statement is a cautious "The childhood of Frederick was thus confided to the French people...Calvinism had marked them with its grave impress..."(p. 11) Also removed detailed explanations that are better addressed by the links they follow (e.g., Huguenot historical background, biographical background on the tutors).

The Frederick Deutche Welle Article was used to support that Frederick was taught French and German by Huguenot, but the article is about music, and it's sole point about French is he preferred to read and write in it. Wtfiv (talk) 06:15, 28 September 2025 (UTC) To adhere to the source, removed "French Huguenot" and replaced with "French Calvinists". Linked "French Calvinists to "Huguenot" for readers seeking more information. Wtfiv (talk) 13:26, 28 September 2025 (UTC)

Commons files used on this page or its Wikidata item have been nominated for deletion

The following Wikimedia Commons files used on this page or its Wikidata item have been nominated for deletion:

• Europe 1740 en.jpg (discussion)
• Europe 1783-1792 en.jpg (discussion)

Participate in the deletion discussions at the nomination pages linked above. —Community Tech bot (talk) 15:22, 15 October 2025 (UTC)

Questionable maps in "Inheritance" section

• Europe 1783-1792 en.jpg and
• Europe 1740 en.jpg

both appear in the "Inheritance" section. These maps appear to have been created by a banned Commons user who was specifically banned for the creation of inaccurate maps.

The maps both also appear to have the word "Germanic" awkwardly inserted in poor typographic style into the name of the Holy Roman Empire. This insertion, besides being very ugly, adds nothing for the reader because "Holy Roman Empire" is the standard English term as used in the article.

I am suggesting that these maps be replaced by alternatives. Ikuzaf (talk) 03:09, 12 April 2026 (UTC)

The maps have been reverted to the original .png maps that were created when this article was being reviewed as a featured article candidate (FAC) in 2021. The banned user created the problematic ones in 2025, adding the word "German". Unfortunately, his edit inserting these modified maps were missed.

The original maps, which have been put back, were created or updated by Bryan Rutherford, who was part of the FAC process. Details of these maps derivation and updates are in the respective file descriptions. Wtfiv (talk) 03:51, 13 April 2026 (UTC)

Speedy work, thanks! Ikuzaf (talk) 07:06, 13 April 2026 (UTC)

Change the portrait back

Change it back to File:Friedrich der Große (1870) - Google Art Project.jpg ~2026-23830-44 (talk) 15:17, 23 April 2026 (UTC)

The 1870 Camphausen portrait, done over 90 years after Frederick's death, is already in the article. Wtfiv (talk) 17:25, 23 April 2026 (UTC)