Editing Frederick III, German Emperor (section)

==Crown Prince of Prussia==
[[Image:Kronprinz Friedrich Wilhelm auf dem Hofball 1878.jpg|thumb|upright|William allowed Frederick few official duties, such as attending balls and socializing with dignitaries (painting by [[Anton von Werner]]).]]
When his father succeeded to the Prussian throne as King William I on 2 January 1861, Frederick became the Crown Prince. Already twenty-nine years old, he would be Crown Prince for a further twenty-seven years. The new king was initially considered politically neutral; Frederick and Prussia's liberal elements hoped that he would usher in a new era of liberal policies. The liberals managed to greatly increase their majority in the Prussian [[Diet (assembly)|Diet]] (''Landtag''), but William soon showed that he preferred the conservative ways. On the other hand, Frederick declared himself in complete agreement with the "essential liberal policy for internal and foreign affairs".<ref name="VdK-68">Van der Kiste, p. 68.</ref> As Crown Prince, he had conflicts with [[Otto von Bismarck]], the chancellor whom his father had appointed.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Friedrich III. deutscher Kaiser und König von Preußen K.u.K.H.|url=http://prussianmachine.com/prussia/f3.htm|access-date=2021-12-11|website=prussianmachine.com}}</ref>

Because William was a dogmatic soldier and unlikely to change his ideas at the age of sixty-four,<ref name="VdK-61">Van der Kiste, p. 61.</ref> he regularly clashed with the Diet over policies. In September 1862, one such disagreement almost led to Frederick being crowned and replacing his father as king; William threatened to abdicate when the Diet refused to fund his plans for the army's reorganization. Frederick was appalled by this action, and said that an abdication would "constitute a threat to the dynasty, country and Crown".<ref name="Pakula-168">Pakula, p. 168.</ref> William reconsidered, and instead on the advice of Minister of War [[Albrecht von Roon]] appointed [[Otto von Bismarck]], who had offered to push through the military reform even against the majority of the Diet, as [[Prime Minister of Prussia|Minister-President]]. The appointment of Bismarck, an authoritarian who would often ignore or overrule the Diet, set Frederick on a collision course with his father and led to his exclusion from affairs of state for the rest of William's reign. Frederick insisted on bloodless "moral conquests", unifying Germany by liberal and peaceful means, but it was Bismarck's policy of [[Blood and Iron (speech)|blood and iron]] that prevailed.<ref name="Nichols-7" /> Frederick's protests against Bismarck's policies peaked at [[Danzig]] on 4 June 1863, where at an official reception in the city he loudly denounced Bismarck's restrictions on freedom of the press.<ref name="Dorpalen-11">Dorpalen, p. 11.</ref><ref>Kollander, pp. 38–45</ref><ref>Oster, pp. 63–64</ref> He thereby made Bismarck his enemy and his father extremely angry.<ref name="Fred"/> Consequently, Frederick was excluded from positions of political power throughout his father's reign. Retaining his military portfolio, he continued to represent Germany and its Emperor at ceremonies, weddings, and celebrations such as Queen Victoria's [[Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria|Golden Jubilee]] in 1887.<ref name="VdK-130+">Van der Kiste, pp. 130–31.</ref> Frederick would spend a large portion of time in Britain, where Queen Victoria frequently allowed him to represent her at ceremonies and social functions.<ref name="Pakula-69">Pakula, p. 69.</ref>

Frederick fought in the wars against Denmark, Austria and France. Although he had opposed military action in each case, once war had started he supported the Prussian military wholeheartedly and took positions of command. Since he had no political influence at all, these were opportunities to prove himself.<ref name="Fred" /> Frederick experienced his first combat in the [[Second Schleswig War]]. Appointed to supervise the supreme [[German Confederation]] commander [[Friedrich Graf von Wrangel|Field Marshal Wrangel]] and his staff, the Crown Prince tactfully managed disputes between Wrangel and the other officers. The Prussians and their [[Austrian Empire|Austrian]] allies defeated the [[Kingdom of Denmark|Danes]] and conquered the southern part of [[Jutland]], but after the war, they spent two years politicking to assume leadership of the German states. This culminated in the [[Austro-Prussian War]]. Frederick "was the only member of the Prussian Crown Council to uphold the rights of the [[Frederick VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein|Duke of Augustenberg]] and oppose the idea of a war with Austria which he described as ''fratricide''." Although he supported unification and the restoration of the medieval empire, "Fritz could not accept that war was the right way to unite Germany."<ref>Balfour, pp. 66–67.</ref>

However, when war with Austria broke out, Frederick accepted command of one of Prussia's three armies. He commanded the [[Second Army (Austro-Prussian War)|Second Army]], with General [[Leonhard Graf von Blumenthal]] as his chief of staff. At first, the Austrian Army defeated the Second Army in the [[Battle of Trautenau]] on 27 June 1866.{{Sfn|Wagner|1899|pp=26-30}} However, next day, Frederick ordered his divisions to attack the Austrian X Corps from early in the morning, which brought Prussia's victory. His plan was successful, leading the victory of [[Battle of Burkersdorf (1866)|Battle of Burkersdorf]]. On that day, when the two battles ([[Battle of Burkersdorf (1866)|Battle of Burkersdorf]], and [[Battle of Skalitz]]) were fought by his Second Army, he was at Kosteletz in order to reach the battlefield easily.{{Sfn|Wagner|1899|pp=36-37}} On 29 June, Frederick ordered his army to advance. He established his headquarters in Kaile. Now he reached the [[Elbe]].{{Sfn|Wagner|1899|p=40}} On June 30, [[Helmuth von Moltke the Elder|Helmuth von Moltke]] ordered him to station his army in the Elbe.{{Sfn|Wagner|1899|p=45}} At Moltke's command, he didn't order the advance but, from 8 o'clock on July 3, his troops started the advance.{{Sfn|Wagner|1899|pp=62-63}} The timely arrival of his army was crucial to the Prussian victory in 1866 at the decisive [[Battle of Königgrätz]], which won the war for Prussia.<ref name="Lord-125">Lord, p. 125.</ref> Nevertheless, the bloodshed caused him great dismay.<ref name="Fred" /> A few days before Königgrätz, Frederick had written to his wife, expressing his hope that this would be the last war he would have to fight. On the third day of the battle he wrote to her again: "Who knows whether we may not have to wage a third war in order to keep what we have now won?"<ref name="Pakula-98">Pakula, p. 98.</ref>

[[Image:Crown Prince Frederick William of Prussia - Illustrated London News August 20, 1870.PNG|20 August 1870, ''[[Illustrated London News]]'' celebrates the Crown Prince's [[Franco-Prussian War]] achievements|thumb|upright|left]]
Four years later Frederick was in action again, this time during the [[Franco-Prussian War]] of 1870, in which he was once more paired with Blumenthal and commanded the [[Third Army (Franco-Prussian War)|Third Army]], consisting of troops from the southern German states by some political reasons.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Howard|first=Michael|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MHZJO78bltAC&q=prince|title=The Franco-Prussian War: The German Invasion of France 1870–1871|date=2013-05-13|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-75306-0|language=en}}</ref><ref name="Howard-60">Howard, p. 60.</ref><ref name="Kollander-92">Kollander, p. 92.</ref> He was praised for his leadership after defeating the French at the battles of [[Battle of Wissembourg (1870)|Wissembourg]] and [[Battle of Wörth (1870)|Wörth]],<ref name="Kollander-92" /> and met with further successes at the [[Battle of Sedan]] and during the [[Siege of Paris (1870-1871)|siege of Paris]]. Frederick was promoted to field marshal on 28 October 1870. Frederick's humane treatment of his country's foes earned him their respect and the plaudits of neutral observers.<ref name="Kollander-109">Kollander, p. 109.</ref> After the Battle of Wörth, a London journalist witnessed the Crown Prince's many visits to wounded Prussian soldiers and lauded his deeds, extolling the love and respect the soldiers held for Frederick. Following his victory, Frederick had remarked to two Paris journalists, "I do not like war gentlemen. If I should reign I would never make it."<ref name="LondonNews">''[[The Illustrated London News]]''</ref> One French journalist remarked that "the Crown Prince has left countless traits of kindness and humanity in the land that he fought against."<ref name="Kollander-109" /> For his behaviour and accomplishments, ''[[The Times]]'' wrote a tribute to Frederick in July 1871, stating that "the Prince has won as much honour for his gentleness as for his prowess in the war".<ref name="Kollander-109" /> After the war, Frederick was awarded with [[Grand Cross of the Iron Cross]].<ref name=":0" />