12. The Badass General Who Revolutionized Skilled Battlefield Maneuvers
King Frederick II (1712 – 1786) ascended the Prussian throne in 1740. He became known as Frederick the Great after he fought a series of wars that greatly expanded Prussia’s territory, and transformed it from a minor power into a major one. Along the way, he demonstrated that he was his generation’s greatest general. Frederick reformed the Prussian army and introduced military innovations, particularly skilled battlefield tactics that revolutionized eighteenth-century European warfare. He emphasized tactical training and transformed Prussia’s army into a well-oiled machine that could execute intricate battlefield maneuvers on the fly. That multiplied his forces’ effectiveness and allowed them to frequently attack and defeat bigger opponents.
Frederick’s father, King Frederick William I, had been a martinet who devoted his life to the Prussian army, and became known as “The Soldier King“. However, he lavished resources to create an army that looked great on the parade ground, not in the field of battle. An example was his Potsdam Regiment, known as the Potsdam Giants, which was composed of exceptionally tall and big men – minimum height 6 foot 2 inches to join, and some stood at 7 feet tall or more. Frederick William’s agents combed Europe in search of extra tall recruits and kidnapped them if they did not willingly enlist. The Soldier King liked nothing more than to spend hours drilling his giants on the parade ground. His son was markedly different, to say the least.
