Lot 72: Gustave Friedrich Amalius Taubert (German, 1755-1839) Frederick William II, King of Prussia (1744–1797), wearing blue coat with red facings, white waistcoat, frilled chemise, orange sash and breast star of the Royal Prussian Order of the Black Eagle

Frederick William II, King of Prussia (1744–1797), wearing blue coat with red facings, white waistcoat, frilled chemise, orange sash and breast star of the Royal Prussian Order of the Black Eagle.
Rectangular gilded composition frame.
Oval, 58mm (2 5/16in) high

Frederick William II was the son of Prince Augustus William of Prussia, the brother of King Frederick II (Frederick the Great) and Louise Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg. He was born in Berlin and ascended the throne in 1786.

His marriage with Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Lüneburg, daughter of Charles I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg was contracted in 1765 but dissolved just four years later. He then married Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt, daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt in July that same year. Although he had a large family with his second wife, he was completely under the influence of his mistress, Wilhelmine Enke, later created Countess Wilhelmine von Lichtenau, a woman of strong intellect and great ambition. He fathered many children with her.

Frederick was devoted to the arts. Beethoven and Mozart enjoyed his patronage and the reputation of his private orchestra spread throughout Europe. In 1781, when still Prince of Prussia and inclined to mysticism, Frederick William joined the Rosicrucians having fallen under the spell of Johann Christof Wöllner (1732-1800). Wöllner dabbled in alchemy and other mystic arts, but he was also a zealous believer of the Christian orthodox faith, endangered by Frederick II's patronage of the Enlightenment. Immediately after his accession to the throne, Frederick William II appointed Wöllner his privy councillor for finance. Wöllner was ennobled and quickly became Prime Minister in all but name.

Frederick William's intervention in European affairs did much to damage the state of Prussia. During the French Revolution, a formal alliance was signed with France in early 1792 and Frederick personally took part in the campaigns of 1792 and 1793. In early 1793, Prussia signed the Second Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with the Russian Empire, agreeing that both countries would receive chunks of Polish-Lithuanian territory. Supporting France, the King was hindered by a need for funds and his counsels were distracted by affairs in Poland, which promised richer spoils than were likely to be gained elsewhere. This encouraged the King to sign the Treaty of Basel with the French Republic in 1795, regarded by the monarchies of Europe as a betrayal, leaving the Kingdom of Prussia isolated. When Frederick William II died in 1797, he left the state in bankruptcy and chaos, the army depleted and the monarchy severely injured. The king had come to be known to the people as 'der dicke lüderjahn' (the obese ne'er-do-well). He was succeeded by his son, Frederick William III.