The German Emperor as Shown in His Public UtterancesWilliam II, German Emperor
History
The German Emperor as Shown in His Public Utterances
William II, German Emperor
Germany -- History -- William II, 1888-1918 -- Sources; Germany -- Politics And Government -- 1871-1918
Just as in the far east of the monarchy at his bidding the powerful
stronghold, which once had implanted German culture into the east,
rearose and is now nearing completion, so, too, here in the beautiful
Taunus Mountains the old Roman citadel has arisen again like a phoenix
from its ashes. It is a testimony to the Roman power, a link in the
great chain which the legions of Rome built about the powerful empire
which, at the bidding of the Roman Emperor Cæsar Augustus alone, forced
its way upon the world and opened the whole world to that Roman
culture which fell so fruitfully upon Germany especially.
With the first blow of my hammer I therefore dedicate this stone to
the memory of Emperor Frederick III; with the second I dedicate it to
German youth, to the generations now growing up who may learn here
in this restored museum what a world-empire means; with the third
I dedicate it to our German Fatherland, to which I hope it will be
granted, through the harmonious co-operation of princes and peoples, of
its armies and its citizens, to become in the future as closely united,
as powerful, and as authoritative as once the Roman world-empire was,
and that, just as in old times they said, "_Civis romanus sum_,"
hereafter, at some time in the future, they will say: "I am a German
citizen."
CABINET ORDER TO THE PRUSSIAN ARMY
JANUARY, 1901
The relationship of the army to the Prussian Kings here referred to
is treated in chapter I.
TO MY ARMY:
To-day, at the celebration which commemorates the two-hundredth
anniversary of our taking over of the royal power of Prussia, my
thoughts are directed first of all to my army. In Prussia the King and
the army belong indissolubly together. This close personal relationship
between me and every single one of my officers and soldiers rests upon
a tradition that dates back 200 years. The spirit which from the time
of Frederick the Great has been fostered in the army by all the Kings,
the spirit of honor, of fidelity to duty, of obedience, of courage,
of chivalry has made the army what it is and what it ought to be, the
sharp, reliable weapon in the hand of her Kings for the protection and
the blessing of the Fatherland's greatness.
To serve the Fatherland at the head of the army, that is my will and
that also was the foremost wish of all my predecessors. It is to their
care that the army owes its power and the consideration which it
enjoys. For 200 years she has proven true the sentence of the great
King: "The world does not rest upon the shoulders of Atlas any more
securely than the Prussian state upon the shoulders of the army!" It
has sealed with its blood its love and gratitude for its Kings!
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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