A biography of Wilhelm II (1859-1941), the last German Emperor, who abdicated at the end of the Great War
'It is not by his will that he will unleash a war, but by his weakness,' King Edward VII wrote of his nephew, Kaiser Wilhelm II, in 1905. Born in 1859, the eldest grandchild of Queen Victoria, Prince Wilhelm of Prussia was torn between two conflicting cultures - that of the Prussian Junker, and that of the English Liberal gentleman.
Ascending the throne in 1888 after the early death of his father, Friedrich III, from cancer, he alternately revered and reviled England, while personifying German military power and embodying his empire's ambition to become the world's foremost naval power as well. A warlord who dreaded the possibility of European conflict, his eagerness to surround himself with a war-hungry entourage, his rash ventures into foreign policy and above all his poor judgment of character, resulted in his leading Germany into the most devastating war Europe had yet witnessed.
This biography examines the complex personality of the sovereign who dominated the continent early in the 20th century, only to become for a while perhaps the most hated man in the world; the handicapped child who became a successful sportsman; the devoted husband who still sought extra-marital liaisons; and the apparently contented exile who expressed his disgust at Nazism while giving vent to his own racial prejudices and endorsing Hitler's attempts to create a 'united states of Europe under German leadership'.
Excerpt
"I hope & trust that the British Press & the Reviews will soon come to their senses & stop the inane ravings with which they are trying to poison Public opinion & to undo the work of King & Ministers. The Quill & Sword must both be kept under restriction!"
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