Frederick William the Great Elector's rule of Prussia (jan 22, 1640 – jan 15, 1688)

Description:

Before his reign:
- Hohenzollern dynasty was responsible for growth of Prussia
- by 17th century , house of Hohenzollern (now Brandenburg Prussia) consisted of three disconnected masses of land in Europe
Key Aspects of his reign:
- laid the groundwork for the Russian State
- created strong army of 40,000 that sucked up more than half of state revenue
- Created War Commissariat initially to levy taxes for military and oversee it, but became central instrument for governing the state; many of its officials were Junkers, Prussian landed aristocracy
- to get noble's to allow him to have complete governance over the state, Frederick allowed them to do whatever they wanted with their peasants, stopped some taxation, and awarded them highest places in military
- employed mercantilism as general rule, simulating domestic industry; however, continued to favor nobles at the expense of general welfare
- son became King Frederick I after assisting HRE

Added to timeline:

Date: