Prince Frederik of the Netherlands

Prince Frederick of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau (full names: Willem Frederik Karel; 28 February 1797, in Berlin – 8 September 1881, in Wassenaar), was the second son of William I of the Netherlands and his wife, Wilhelmine of Prussia.

Frederick was active in the military and political life of the Netherlands. He served as Commissary-general of the Department of War and as Chief Director of War and Navy, where he modernized the army according to the Prussian model. Frederick also led the Dutch troops during the Belgian Revolution in 1830. Additionally, he was a prominent Freemason and Grand Master of the Order of Freemasons. After his active career, he withdrew to his estate and played a mediating role within the royal family.

Early life The prince grew up at the court of his grandfather Frederick William II of Prussia and uncle Frederick William III of Prussia. One of his tutors was Carl von Clausewitz. Aged 16, the prince fought in the Battle of Leipzig.

The prince first entered the Netherlands in December 1813. As he spoke no Dutch, the prince was sent to Leiden University to get a further education. He was also educated by Karl Ludwig von Phull in The Hague. When Napoleon returned from Elba, during the Hundred Days the prince was given command of a detachment of Wellington's army which was posted in a fall back position near Braine-le-Comte should the battle taking place at Waterloo be lost.

Prince of the Netherlands Based on a house treaty, Frederick was to inherit the family's German possessions upon his father's death. After the treaty of Vienna these were no longer in the possession of the family. He instead was made heir to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg. In 1816, Frederick relinquished this claim in exchange for land in the Netherlands and the title of Prince of the Netherlands. As a further compensation he received a yearly amount of 190,000 Dutch guilders. This made him the wealthiest member of the House of Orange-Nassau.

In 1816 Frederick was appointed Grand Master of the Grand Orient of the Netherlands a function he would hold until his death in 1881. In 1851 he became one of the first Honorary Members of The Grand Lodge of Scotland, alongside Oscar I of Sweden.

In 1826 Frederick was appointed Commissary-general of the Department of War. In this office, Frederick reorganized the army on a Prussian model. Frederick founded the Royal military academy in Breda and reequipped the army with modern weapons.

In 1829 Frederick was a candidate for the Greek throne, but he declined because he did not want to be king of a country whose language and traditions were foreign to him.

When the Belgian Revolution broke out in 1830, Frederick commanded the troops sent to Brussels to suppress the rebellion there. Frederick led these troops in several days of fighting in Brussels, but could not retake the city. Frederick also took part in the campaign of his brother's 1831 Ten Days' Campaign in Belgium.

When his father abdicated in 1840, Frederick withdrew from public life to his estates at Wassenaar. In 1846 he acquired Schloss Muskau in Prussia where he completed Muskau Park, the largest and one of the most famous English gardens in Central Europe, stretching along both sides of the present German–Polish border on the Lusatian Neisse. The park had been laid out from 1815 onwards at the behest of Prince Hermann von Pückler-Muskau (1785–1871). In July 2004, Muskau Park was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Upon the death of his elder brother in 1849, the country was left with a large debt. Frederick managed to pay off a million guilder to Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, who was brother-in-law to William II. Grand Cross, 18 August 1831 Grand Cross of the Order of Adolphe of Nassau, with Swords, June 1858 Grand Cross of the Royal Hungarian Order of St. Stephen, 1835 Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order, 1821 Electorate of Hesse: Knight of the Order of the Golden Lion, 5 June 1851 Grand Cross of the House and Merit Order of Peter Frederick Louis, with Golden Crown, 26 July 1853 Kingdom of Prussia: Iron Cross (1813) "Honour Senior", 2nd Class, 21 October 1813 Knight of the Order of the Black Eagle, 10 October 1815; with Collar, 1854 Commander of Honour of the Johanniter Order, 1855 Grand Commander's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, 1861; with Star, 16 July 1876 Knight of the Order of St. George, 4th Class, September 1813 Knight of the Order of St. Andrew, 22 June 1814 Knight of the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, 22 June 1814 Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III, 8 November 1817 Sweden-Norway: Knight of the Order of the Seraphim, 10 February 1850 Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav, 19 June 1850 Knight of the Order of Charles XIII, 19 July 1852 Grand Cross of the Order of the Württemberg Crown, 1849