Editing Frederick the Great (section)

=== Religion ===
[[File:Berlin, Mitte, Bebelplatz, Hedwigskathedrale 02.jpg|thumb|alt=Photograph of the front elevation of a domed cathedral|[[St. Hedwig's Cathedral]], the first Roman Catholic church built in Berlin since the Reformation, was erected by the sanction of Frederick, who also sketched its design.{{sfn|St. Hedwig's Cathedral|2019|ps=: {{lang|de|Die Hedwigskirche...war die erste katholische Kirche, die in der Residenzstadt Friedrichs des Großen nach der Reformation gebaut werden durfte...Der Bau geschah auf Wunsch der katholischen Gemeinde und mit der Zustimmung Friedrichs des Großen.}} [The Hedwig Church...was the first Roman Catholic church that was allowed to be built in the royal seat of Frederick the Great after the Reformation...The construction was carried out with the sanction of Frederick the Great.]}}]]

In contrast to his devoutly Calvinist father, Frederick was a [[Religious skepticism|religious sceptic]], and has been described as a [[Deism|deist]].{{sfnm|1a1=Bonney|1a2=Trim|1y=2006|1p=[{{Google books|id=jQJuObBQerIC|pg=PA154|plainurl=yes}} 154]|2a1=Fraser|2y=2001|2p=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatki00fras/page/58 58]|3a1=MacDonogh|3y=2000|3p=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatli00macd/page/241 241]}}{{efn|He remained critical of Christianity.{{sfn|Mitford|1970|p=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreat00mitf_0/page/75 75]}} See Frederick's {{lang|fr|De la Superstition et de la Religion}} (''Superstition and Religion'') in which he says in the context of Christianity in Brandenburg: "It is a shame to human understanding, that at the beginning of so learned an age as the XVIIIth [18th century] all manner of superstitions were yet subsisting."{{sfn|Frederick II|1750b}}}} Frederick was pragmatic about religious faith. Three times during his life, he presented his own confession of Christian faith: during his imprisonment after Katte's execution in 1730, after his conquest of Silesia in 1741, and just before the start of the Seven Years' War in 1756. In each case, these confessions also served personal or political goals.{{sfn|Kloes|2016|pp=102–108}}

He tolerated all faiths in his realm, but Protestantism remained the favoured religion, and Catholics were not chosen for higher state positions.{{sfn|Holborn|1982|p=[{{Google book|id=yeXYMV3CZ0IC|page=274|plainurl=yes}} 274]}} Frederick wanted development throughout the country, adapted to the needs of each region. He was interested in attracting a diversity of skills, whether from Jesuit teachers, Huguenot citizens, or Jewish merchants and bankers. Frederick retained [[Society of Jesus|Jesuits]] as teachers in Silesia, [[Warmia]], and the [[Netze District]], recognising their educational activities as an asset for the nation.{{sfn|MacDonogh|2000|pp=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatli00macd/page/364 364–366]}} He continued to support them after their suppression by [[Pope Clement XIV]].{{sfn|Fraser|2001|p=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatki00fras/page/241 241]}} He befriended the Roman Catholic Prince-Bishop of Warmia, [[Ignacy Krasicki]], whom he asked to consecrate St. Hedwig's Cathedral in 1773.{{sfn|MacDonogh|2000|p=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatli00macd/page/363 363]}} He accepted countless Protestant weavers from Bohemia, who were fleeing from the devoutly Catholic rule of Maria Theresa, granting them freedom from taxes and military service.{{sfn|Brunhouse|2006|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=3LylIwXu0xsC&pg=PA419 419]}} Constantly looking for new colonists, he encouraged immigration by repeatedly emphasising that nationality and religion were of no concern to him. This policy allowed Prussia's population to recover very quickly from its considerable losses during Frederick's three wars.{{sfn|Ritter|1936|p=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_520010744/page/180 180]}}

Though Frederick was known to be more tolerant of Jews and Roman Catholics than many neighbouring German states, his practical-minded tolerance was not fully unprejudiced. Frederick wrote in his {{lang|fr|Testament politique}}:

<blockquote>We have too many Jews in the towns. They are needed on the Polish border because in these areas Hebrews alone perform trade. As soon as you get away from the frontier, the Jews become a disadvantage, they form cliques, they deal in contraband and get up to all manner of rascally tricks which are detrimental to Christian burghers and merchants. I have never persecuted anyone from this or any other sect; I think, however, it would be prudent to pay attention, so that their numbers do not increase.{{sfn|MacDonogh|2000|p=[https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatli00macd/page/347 347]}}</blockquote>

Frederick was less tolerant of Catholicism in his occupied territories. In Silesia, he disregarded [[Canon law of the Catholic Church|canon law]] to install clergy who were loyal to him.{{sfn|Fay|1945|p=[https://www.jstor.org/stable/1843138 528]}} In Polish Prussia, he confiscated the Roman Catholic Church's goods and property,{{sfn|Konopczyński|1919|p=[https://archive.org/details/briefoutlineofpo00kono/page/46 46]}} making clergy dependent on the government for their pay and defining how they were to perform their duties.{{sfn|Philippson|1905|pp=[https://archive.org/details/historyofallnati15wrig/page/227 227–228]}}

Like many leading Enlightenment figures, Frederick was a [[Freemasonry|Freemason]],{{sfn|Waite|1921|p=[https://archive.org/details/newencyclopaedia0000wait/page/n355 306]}} having joined during a trip to Brunswick in 1738.{{sfn|Kugler|1840|p=[https://archive.org/details/pictorialhistor00menzgoog/page/n142 124]}} His membership legitimised the group's presence in Prussia and protected it against charges of subversion.{{sfn|Melton2001|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=QZovusQ1SjYC&pg=PA267 267]}} In 1786, he became the First Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree; his [[double-headed eagle]] emblem was used for 32nd and 33rd degree Masons following the adoption of seven additional degrees to the Masonic Rite.{{sfn|Gaffney|2020}}

Frederick's religious views resulted in his condemnation by the anti-revolutionary French Jesuit, [[Augustin Barruel]]. In his 1797 book, {{lang|fr|Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire du Jacobinisme}} (''[[Memoirs Illustrating the History of Jacobinism]]''), Barruel described an influential [[conspiracy theory]] that accused King Frederick of taking part in a plot which led to the outbreak of the [[French Revolution]] and having been the secret "protector and adviser" of fellow-conspirators Voltaire, Jean le Rond d'Alembert, and [[Denis Diderot]], who all sought "to destroy Christianity" and foment "rebellion against Kings and Monarchs".{{sfn|Barruel|1799|p=[https://archive.org/details/memoirsillustra01conggoog/page/n24 1]}}