What Should Be On Every Good Citizen's Mind
I'm figuring a high percentage (if not all) of the 4 or 5 people that will take the time to read this live in King of Prussia (if you don't, stick around, this may be an interesting history lesson for you as well) and it occurred to me as I was sitting here that we live in a city with a really strange name. Nothing to be ashamed of really - I'm quite confident that people live in towns with dumber names. (Everyone's heard of Hell, Michigan, and I learned from an informative Snapple cap that there is a town called Big Ugly, West Virginia) But King of Prussia? It's not like there's any particular name given - do all the dead Kings of Prussia secretly grumble about which one the town is named after? Solution? Do some research and bring this heated debate to an end.
- 1660 - Prussia's independence is secured and Frederick William becomes the first King of Prussia
- 1701 - William's son Frederick I (Frederick? Prince Frederick? Prince Frederick Street? Hmm...) becomes the King of Prussia
- Early 1700's - Frederick's son, Frederick William I takes over
- 1740 - Frederick William I leaves the empire to his son, Frederick II, the Great. He lives up to his name's billing by annexing both the Austrian province of Silesia and Polish Royal Prussia.
- 1797 - Frederick William III succeeded to the throne
- 1844 - After Frederick William III was defeated and lost nearly all of his territory to Napoleon, King William I, aided by Prince Otto von Bismarck, becomes the final King of Prussia
As you can see, there really is no clear cut answer, no right or wrong, black or white. It is a mystery that has plagued this town for years and a battle that will continue as long as we live here. So, for now, I'll just cut loose (like Footloose... because we're watching it tonight) and thank you to Mr. or Mrs. Funk and Wagnall or a riveting afternoon of encyclopedia reading.