Chapter Page I Early Life 11 II A Hard School 19 III Years of Peace 36 IV Troublous Times 42 V In Trust 49 VI The Austro-Prussian War 56 VII The Franco-Prussian War 64 VIII Sedan 73 IX Army Anecdotes 88 X Family Life of the Emperor 101 XI The Emperor’s Death 112 Appendix 128 Illustrations Emperor William First _Frontispiece_ The cornflower wreaths 22 The two Emperors 68 The Emperor’s deathbed 116 Emperor William First Chapter I Early Life King Frederick William Second was still upon the throne of Prussia when his son and successor, afterward Frederick William Third, was married to the lovely Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. The memory of this noble pair is treasured in every Prussian heart, and their self-sacrificing devotion to the people, their benevolence and piety, will serve as a shining example for all time. On the fifteenth of October, 1795, a son was born to them, the future King Frederick William Fourth, and on the twenty-second of March, 1797, the Crown Princess gave birth to a second son, whose name was destined to be inscribed in golden letters in the book of the world’s history. Although a handsome boy, his health was so delicate as to cause his parents much anxiety, and it seems almost like a special dispensation of Providence that he should have lived to an age far beyond that usually allotted to the fate of mortals.