Fredersdorfiana

[selenak]

It's only taken a few months, but yours truly was finally able to identify the original sources for two particular Fredersdorf-related claims in various biographies.

Firstly, there's what we dubbed "The Matter of the Handsome Hussar". This first came to our attention in Wolfgang Burgdorf's biography "Friedrich der Große". Burgdorf, as if to make up for centuries of biographical no-homo'ing, is of "he was GAY GAY GAY AND THERE WAS NO HETEROSEX WITH ANYONE ANYWHERE" persuasion (this leads, for example, to the bewildering statement that Fritz was life long utterly platonic pen pals with the Countess Orzelska, which would be nice except none of us has seen a single letter in any collection anywhere), and often given to not providing any citation. So his declaration that "the King's love could be deadly" not just for Katte, but for "a handsome hussar named Girgorijj" who committed sucide after Fritz withdrew his favour was taken by us with a pinch of salt.

Then mildred_of_midgard came across the somewhat more reliable Tim Blanning making the following statement in his Frederick biography:

Only once did Fredersdorf appear to have lost his position, when ejected from Frederick’s tent while on campaign in favor of a handsome hussar. The mysterious suicide of his rival soon afterwards saw Fredersdorf back in Frederick’s favor.

Blanning provided a citation, to which, Peter-Michael Hahn, Friedrich II von Preußen., p. 62. I looked up said biography, and it did say what Blanning claims it did in as many words, but Hahn did not provide a citation as to where he had the story from. (Though Hahn is otherwise more given to provide footnotes than not.) So there we were, with a dead hussar, a potential temporary Fritz/Fredersdorf fallout with no date given, the insinuation that Fredersdorf might or might not have had anything to do with the death of said hussar, and no actual source. Until we came upon Gustav Volz, author and editor of many a Fritz-related book.

Gustav Volz, "Friedrich der Große im Spiegel seiner Zeitgenossen", volume 1, FINALLY turns out to have the original source of the "handsome husar", "the King's love could be deadly" "Fredersdorf jealous, soldier dead?" insinuations. It's on page 203. Context: part of a dispatch dated Hannover, March 9th, 1742, by one Baron August Wilhelm von Schicheldt, Secret Councillor to George II, Hannover department. In addition to writing a "hot or not?"profile of Fritz himself, he also profiles the entire court, politicians like Podewils (current Fritz minister, future envoy to Vienna and MT profiler), courtiers like Pöllnitz, relations like AW (who gets described as good natured but undereducated and not nearly the witty conversationalist or leader Big Bro is)...and finally he gets around to Fredersdorf. This report claims he's been enobled, which the books I've read so far said wasn't the case. Anyway, here's what the Baron says (drumroll...):

( Fredersdorf: Prime Suspect? )

The other Fredersdorf-related tale of uncertain origin we've been wondering about shows up in 19th century biographies like Preuss or Carlyle, but not so much in 20th century and later biographies, presumably because through later biographers, who had access to sources Preuss, Caryle et al did not, have dismissed it for the same reasons we did. This anecdote has Fredersdorf getting the permission from Fritz to marry Karoline Marie Elisabeth Daum in 1753 by pretending to be on death's door, and, being given the permission, marrying her within 24 hours to prevent Fritz from changing his mind. This is belied by, among other things, Lehndorff in his diaries mentioning the future Mrs. Fredersdorf as the future Mrs. Fredersdorf almost a year earlier; he also is informed of Fritz' wedding present for the bride. (December 15th 1752. Dinner with Frau von Grappendorf, a very charming lady who has a revolting husband; in his appearance, he is a monster, full of prejudices and rather ridiculous. I make the aquaintance of the Abbé de Prades, who had to leave France due to his preachings. I also see the fiancee of Fredersdorf; she has received 5000 Taler as a wedding present from the King.)

Unsurprisingly, the origin of the "24 hours" tale is a poet, to wit, Achim von Arnim. Reminder for non-Germans re: Achim von Arnim: grandson of Fredersdorf's widow on the maternal side, bff of Clemens Brentano, husband of Clemens' sister Bettina, both of whom are more famous in German literature than Achim. Who spent much of his childhood on the Zernikow estate. His mother had died shortly after his birth, his father didn't want to take care of him and his brother Karl Otto, and his grandmother, Karoline Maria Elisabeth Labes, widowed twice at this point (Fredersdorf was husband No.1, Johann Labes, also chamberlain to the King, was husband No.2, who died in 1776), literary bought the right the raise her grandkids from her son-in-law with 1.000 Taler and a contract saying as much. (Possibly to ensure he wouldn't suddenly change his mind again, the law favouring fathers.) This shows what an enterprising lady she was in her older years.

( Zernikow, Karoline Maria and Fredersdorf: quotes and pictures await )

Jean Orieux: Voltaire ou la Royauté de l'Esprit (dt: Das Leben des Voltaire)

[selenak]

This biography was reccommended to me by shezan after she commented on my Voltaire tale, as "opinionated but never bettered" as far as French Voltaire biographies go. It has nearly a thousand pages, and does qualify as a magnum opus.

( Assessment of Jean Orieux as a biographer )

( Orieux' general take on Friedrich II )

On to excerpts and interesting (usually new-to-me) details.

( Voltaire at school )

Even after havng read through the entire correspondance as published, Orieux still had some new or partially new to me juicy quotes from Fritz, Voltaire and Émilie about the Franco-Prussian dangerous liasons.

( You will admit this is a pretty rivalry we have )

So much for the first two decades. On to the next two, i.e. the fallout of the acrimonious divorce between King and writer.

( How to understand this change of heart? )

While a lot of the drama in Voltaire's life was about literature, feuding with people, and various campaigns for justice, a considerable part was also about money, Voltaire being one of the few writers of his or any other age with a solid buisiness sense. Unsurprisingly, one chapter is titled "Let's Talk About Money". Orieux gives an example of Voltaire the early modern Capitalist. "Gget wealthy" had been an early goal just as "become the greatest writer of the age" had been.

( Where Voltaire got his considerable income from (not from his writings) )

But of course, had Voltaire been just a good writer with a good (and at times shady) nose for business, the French wouldn't, to this day, refer to his era as "the age of Voltaire". Orieux covers the way Voltaire basically invented the idea of the modern French intellectual extensively. Two examples of this will do.

First, here's a great example of Voltaire's mixture of business sense, PR sense, artistic sensibility and generosity at their best (i.e. the light side counterpart to such stunts as those he pulled off in Prussia).

( The story of Mademoiselle Corneille )

And of course, the most famous of all campaigns-for-greater-justice Voltailre ever conducted:

( The Calas Affair )

As Orieux put it: of course there had been numerous show trials and murders by law before Calas. But until this affair, whoever was declared guilty, remained guilty. (Except for Jeanne d'Arc, but that was a very special case.) A victim once condemned remained condemned. The concept of the judicative being held to account for abuse, of a normal citizen's name being cleared, this was new. As was the idea of a publicity campaign for this goal, and intellectuals weighing or even spearheading the campaign; this was more than a century before Emile Zola and the Dreyfus affair.

Finally, the conclusion Orieux arrived at about Voltaire, which he put right in the preface, where he explains why he devoted six years of his life to writing this biography:

( This man without a God believed in human beings - without too many illusions. )

( Cahn reviews Orieux as well )