A History of Prussia

by Hannsjoachim Wolfgang Koch

In little more than two centuries Prussia rose from medieval obscurity and the devastation of the Thirty Years War to become the dominant power of continental Europe. Her rulers rose from Electors to Kings, and from Kings to Emperors. It is a dramatic story, and H. W. Koch fills a major gap in English-language literature with this comprehensive account. It traces the origins and rise of the Prussian state from the thirteenth century to the causes and consequences of its incorporation into the German Empire.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, European History, Germany, 19th Century, 18th Century, German Literature

326 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Hanns Joachim Wolfgang Koch is a historian. He was a news editor for Radio Free Europe from 1952 until 1956 News editor at Radio Free Europe. 1961-1965. He earned his doctorate at Keele University in 1965. Since 1970 he has taught at the University of York.

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A History of Prussia by H.W. Koch, is a brief and concise history of the State of Prussia, from the origins of the precursor Teutonic Order, to the formation of the North German Confederation and subsequently, Germany. Prussia is a region now part of Poland, and historically populated by people called Prussians. The Teutonic Order was founded by German Knights in 1190 in the crusading city of Acre, but soon took on a role as a crusading order not in the holy land, but in Eastern Europe. The Teutonic Knights were industrious, stoic and zealously Catholic, and set up a series of fortified castles in Prussia and into Estonia, Poland and Lithuania. They provided a fighting force against the pagan Lithuanian state - a powerful entity in Eastern Europe. The Knights received funding and support from both the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire and its German princes, and was able to successfully mediate in internal conflicts between these actors, all the while receiving funding and recruits. The Knights also sat in a valuable trading location, in the Baltic coastal region, with its cross trade between Western Europe and the Russian/Asian northern trade routes. This position allowed it to collect valuable tolls on shipped goods, and it also exported large amounts of grains to Europe and Russia. This growing affluence was to be its downfall. The Knights soon lost there crusading cause in Europe - Lithuania and Poland joined forces, and the Lithuanian arch-enemy converted to Catholicism. The Knights began to stagnate - rich lords with an unruly peasantry, and no military cause to fight for. This decadence led to their subjugation by the Polish state, and eventually a revolution, forming the Duchy of Prussia.

In the meantime, Prussia's other half in the Margraviate of Brandenburg also saw its fortunes rising. This state of the Holy Roman Empire saw much in the way of dynastic struggle, as Wittelsbach rulers from Bavaria were replaced by the House Luxembourg, and finally and fatefully by the Hohenzollern's of southwestern Germany. The Brandenburg state saw the need to expand and gain access to the sea, fighting in the costly Thirty Years War to try and make this happen. Eventually, through much bloodshed, they were able to gain coastal possessions, and expanded into Western Germany with a series of inherited enclaves near the Dutch border. They also had dynastic ties with the Duchy of Prussia, and eventually saw the two states unite into a Prussian state - partially within the Holy Roman Empire (German possessions) and partially without (Prussian possessions). The new Prussian state was geographically messy - with possessions stretching in the West through the Rhineland area of modern Germany, in the south in modern Bavaria, in central Germany in Brandenburg, and East in Prussia. These lands were not connected, and often separated by hostile actors. It thus became a policy goal to unite the possessions of the state to ensure internal security.

These policies were handled by a series of Frederick William's - from the Great Elector to Frederick the Great himself and continuing into the formation of Germany under Emperor William I in 1871. The rulers of Prussia became excellent at utilizing power politics to create temporarily beneficial alliances in order to shave territory off of Great powers in Austria and France, to subject the other states of the Holy Roman Empire, and to mold these possessions into a united Germany. Even so, German nationalism did not become a force until early in the 19th Century. What primarily motivated the Prussians at first were security concerns. Trying to keep external threats at bay while maintaining a geographically fragmented state was difficult, and Prussia saw invasions and turmoil from all comers. Swedish, French, Russian and Austrian troops all marched the breadth of the Kingdom, but tact diplomacy, a famously well disciplined and organized military, an efficient and developing centralized bureaucracy and a whole lot of luck seemed to lead to Prussia's ascendance. This culminated in the defeat of Napoleon the III of France, the annexation of Alsace and parts of Lorraine, and the formation of a united German nation in 1871. To achieve this, a slow and painful modernization of the military - through reorganization, efficient planning, and military knowledge gained through catastrophic failure, all created a tough and lean fighting force. This force was able to throw the Austrians back, put the final nail in the Holy Roman Empire, and defeat the great power of Europe - France.

Koch's book is detailed, brief and interesting. He covers all the basics: the growth of the state politically, its cultural and social history, the slow rise of its famed military, and the development of its economy as it advanced toward the industrial age. From its semi-mythical beginnings as a crusading order of knights, to its feverish ascent as a newly unified and nationalistic nation-state, this is some interesting history. This book can be easily recommended to those who enjoy a good history book, and those looking for a solid history of this state without any modern political infliction.

[Kit · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pulled out this title after reading a survey of Polish history by Zamoyski and desirous for more history of central Europe. Koch delivers a sweeping history of white-washed acts of Prussian nobility and not much else. It begins with the establishment of the Teutonic Order and ends roughly with the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. He dwells awhile on Frederick the Great and his sire, spending a lot of print on the magnificence of the Prussian military organization and its exploits, especially when fighting Napoleon's war machine. Koch gives short shrift to the Baltic crusades and the initial division of Poland, so a context with its neighbors other than adversarial is hugely lacking. Koch ignores all aspects of trade and economics except in the vaguest of references, and no mention of culture and arts but for military architecture. Religion gets a fair share of references though. I found the book lacking clarification of many huge, momentous blocks of historical periods (medieval, baroque, classical, modern), and of Prussia's contributions to each. I was left with more questions than nuanced answers provided. Unification of German princedoms/kingdoms into a single country was brief and glossy, presumably the reader comes to the book with all this knowledge beforehand. The modern period gets the least coverage, and nothing about the Soviet overrunning of stubborn Prussian defences or the fate of Konigsberg, now Kaliningrad. This book, like all similar history surveys, sorely lacks lots of 3-color maps and detailed timelines with comparisons of neighbors. The only mention of Prussia's WWII contribution is the apology that many of the conspirators to the assassination of Hitler was orchestrated and carried out by Prussian officers. Yay...??

I'm giving away this title and searching for a more balanced and rounded history of this important player in European history.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very Very detailed history of Prussia, a little too detailed for me. A difficult read, tougher than some text books I've read. The author definitely is passionate about the history of Prussia.

[Jim Blessing · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately, not an interesting read.

[Mark Singer · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A History of Prussia" is a good general survey of the most militant and expansionist of all the German States from its origins as an outgrowth of the Teutonic Knights in the middle ages until it was absorbed within the German Empire it had created after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. Koch provides a lot of detail and as such this is a book to be digested, not skimmed. There is an excellent bibliography for further research and I would recommend this to anyone interested in German and European history.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

An old book, very well researched and packed full of interesting info, but the style was plodding, and sometimes it was hard to stay with it.

[Markus Zachary Xavier · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, insightful, revisionist history of Prussia.