Wilhelm I
19th-century German Emperor and King of Prussia (1797–1888)
Wilhelm I (also known in English as William I; German: Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 1861 and German Emperor from 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the first head of state of a united Germany. He was regent of Prussia from 1858 to 1861 for his elder brother, King Frederick William IV. During the reign of his grandson Wilhelm II, he was known as Emperor Wilhelm the Great (German: Kaiser Wilhelm der Große).
The second son of Prince Frederick William and Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Wilhelm was not expected to ascend to the throne. His grandfather, King Frederick William II died the year he was born, and his father was crowned Frederick William III. Wilhelm fought with distinction during the War of the Sixth Coalition, and afterwards became a prominent figure within the Prussian Army. In 1840, his childless elder brother became King of Prussia, making him heir presumptive. Wilhelm played a major role in crushing the Revolutions of 1848 in Germany, although he was briefly forced into exile in England. Frederick William IV suffered a stroke in 1857 and was left incapacitated, and Wilhelm was formally named Prince Regent a year later. In 1861, Wilhelm ascended to the Prussian throne on his elder brother's death.
Upon ascension, Wilhelm immediately came into conflict with the liberal Landtag over his proposed military budget.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Wilhelm I” is 19th-century German Emperor and King of Prussia (1797–1888). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Wilhelm, 19th-century and German, not as a finished interpretation.
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The phrase “19th-century German Emperor and King of Prussia (1797–1888)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q150652. VIAF identifies the subject as 43148190. The Library of Congress control number is n80149385. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1797, 1888, 1861 and 1871.
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This entry incorporates text from “Wilhelm I” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.