The Rise of Prussia 1700-1830 [Paperback]

Philip G. Dwyer (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0582292689 | ISBN-13: 978-0582292680 | Publication Date: March 18, 2002

At the beginning of the eighteenth century Prussia was but one in a mosaic of German states, but it rose to be the unchallenged leader of German-speaking Europe after the fall of Napoleon. The book goes beyond the political, military and diplomatic concerns of the Prussian elite, whose record of events is the one upon which most histories of Prussia are based, and explains its rise in relation to Prussian society as a whole. Political analysis is integrated with material on such areas as agrarian society, urban life and religion, which are not fully examined in existing histories.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

At the beginning of the eighteenth century Prussia was a third-rate power linked by disparate patches of land that were difficult to administer and even more difficult to defend. It suffered from poor agricultural land, declining trade and had a sparse population. This was hardly the stuff out of which great powers were made, yet within a few decades it rose to become one of the most important political players in Germany and on the European scene.

Only by appreciating Prussia's unique social, economic and cultural make-up is it possible to understand its startling emergence as a leading power. With specially-commissioned chapters from leading authorities in their fields, this book demonstrates the full diversity of Prussia. It goes beyond the conventional examination of the political, military and diplomatic concerns of the Prussian elite, whose record of events is the one upon which most histories of Prussia are based, and sets out to explain its rise in relation to Prussian society as a whole. The political analysis is therefore integrated with material on such areas as agrarian society, urban life and religion, which are not fully examined in existing accounts.

With the rise of Prussia as a great power, its traditional seventeenth century structures had to compete with economic and political forces sweeping though society at the beginning of the nineteenth century. The tensions these forces created are further explored in the companion volume to this book, Modern Prussian History 1830-1947.

Phillip Dwyer is Lecturer at the University of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Longman (March 18, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0582292689
• ISBN-13: 978-0582292680
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,103,298 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A History of a Lost Place, August 27, 2004

By 

F. A Castellon "Prime" (Silver Spring, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rise of Prussia 1700-1830 (Paperback)

Not many people know about Prussia. In fact when someone says that name maybe the things that will pop into your mind are nazis and war. This book goes back to the very beginning with a couple of essays explaning the origin of Prussia. A place that no longer exists but if you were ever interested in how it all began before it all was destroyed, this is a good, not great start.

I was very excited to get this book because even though I had a lot of knowledge about Prussia, I wanted this book to tell me the things I did not know, specially from the Eve of it's formation. This book does a good job at that. Explaining about the first Prussian King and how he saved most of his money to create a worthy Army. The book goes to great lenght to explain WHY Prussia needed a good Army and henceforth why Prussia from that point on, was seen as an Agressor. An agressor so great that it had to be abolished by the allies in 1947.

The books moves on to Frederick the great, about his "two" reigns and the influences he had on later kings. Plus how he made Prussia a Major power but without any teeth. A power that was on paper only, but that was his goal and henceforth, he was call "The Great"

The last few chapters are devoted to the Napoleonic crisis and how it affected Prussia. Somethings were missing, like no real Military plans were talked about but again, I think the atuthor was trying to explain the effects of after the war and not the battles.

Overall a very good explanation of the birth of Prussia and it's kings. To understand Prussia is to see why it had to have a great Army and this books answers that question clearly. In the end, maybe it was Prussia's destiny to be defeated because it was really surrounded by it's enemies and a war fought forever, just cannot be won.