William I (German: Wilhelm I, March 22, 1797 - March 9, 1888), whose full name is Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig, was the king of Prussia (from January 2, 1861 to March 9, 1888), and was crowned the first emperor of the German Italian Empire on January 18, 1871.
William I joined the army in the Anti Napoleon War when he was a boy. In his middle age, he brutally suppressed the constitutional movement and was known as Prince Butcher of Shotgun. After inheriting the Prussian throne, he reformed the military system, unified Germany through three dynastic wars, and established the German Empire. After his death, because of his great achievement in unifying Germany, he was called the Great Emperor by his grandson, William the Great.

Shotgun Prince
Kaiser Wilhelm I
King William I [1]
William I was born in Berlin, the capital of Prussia, on March 22, 1797. He was the second son of Prussian King Friedrich William III, and his mother was Queen Louise Auguste Williamminnie Amari. Prince William did not receive much royal education because his father did not expect him to succeed in the future. He received the traditional military training of Prussia when he was young. He joined the army at the age of 10. In February 1814, he joined the army as a captain to participate in the anti Napoleon war. In Barr Sur Obey near Frankfurt, the Prussian army fought fiercely with the French Napoleon army. William performed well in the battle. His superiors called him a brave soldier in his service report. After 1815, he also became an attractive diplomat. In 1825, he won the rank of Lieutenant General and served as the commander of the Prussian Guard Corps.
In 1840, William's father died, and his brother Friedrich William IV succeeded him as king of Prussia. Because William IV was seriously ill, he asked William to handle government affairs and made him Prince of Prussia. In 1848, the 1848 European Revolution broke out. Under the influence of the French February Revolution. On March 13, the revolution took place in Vienna, and the people ousted Austrian Prime Minister Metternich. On March 9, William was appointed as the military governor and special military plenipotentiary of Rhine Westphalia at a time when the revolutionary mood was at an all-time high. He made a seditious speech in the barracks of the Berlin Guards, instigating the army to commit mass killings on March 14, 15 and 16. On March 18, the Berlin Revolution took place. Demonstrators gathered in front of the imperial palace to demand the government to withdraw its troops from the city. The king and his ministers panicked. Prince William ordered the army to shoot the uprising crowd. Workers, citizens and college students in Berlin built barricades and fought for 14 hours. They defeated 14000 soldiers overnight and forced their commanders to withdraw from Berlin in the morning. The king had to surrender to the people. William was afraid of the angry crowd and was forced to flee to London in disguise.
Kaiser Wilhelm I
Kaiser Wilhelm I
But the proletariat at that time was not yet mature, and the leadership of the revolution fell into the hands of the bourgeoisie. The new cabinet was formed by the leading bourgeois figures in Rhine, Comphausen, Hansemann and several bourgeois nobles. On June 8, 1848, the Commhausen Cabinet recalled Prince William, who had been expelled by the people, to Berlin, and fabricated that he had completed "diplomatic missions" in Britain. The bourgeoisie represented by Commhausen believed that it could safeguard its own interests to let the heir to the throne organize the constitutional monarchy, and they were willing to act as "a shield to protect the dynasty". The recalled Prince William acted as the head of the counter revolutionary forces. When he met the officers in Koblenz, he said: "I only trust these officers." A constituency in Posen elected William to Parliament. William verbally expressed his support for the new policy. In fact, he hoped to promote the reform of the system as soon as possible.
On March 28, 1849, the Frankfurt Parliament passed the Imperial Constitution and elected Prussian King Friedrich William IV as the German emperor. The king of Prussia refused to accept the crown from parliament and refused to accept the imperial draft constitution. In May 1849, an uprising broke out in Baden, Pfalz, Dresden and other regions in South Germany, which was known as the "Movement to Safeguard the Imperial Constitution". William led an army to suppress. The military court sentenced 28 revolutionaries to death, including those who did not take part in the fight at all, such as Trutschler and Hover, a primary school teacher. William's atrocities aroused the indignation of the masses and gave him the nickname "Prince of Shotgun", which spread among the residents of South Germany.

Military reform
In 1857, childless William IV suffered a stroke, his body was partially paralyzed, and then he became insane and could not manage state affairs. In October 1858, Prince William became regent. On October 7 the next year, William took power. In order to strengthen the military strength of Prussia, the financial support of the bourgeoisie is needed. To this end, William pretended to be a liberal. He dissolved Mantoifel's cabinet and appointed a cabinet headed by the bourgeois aristocrat Oswald Schweilin. The bourgeoisie believes that this period is the "new era" of the free bourgeoisie. In the parliamentary elections held in 1858, after William began his regency, liberals became the majority in the House of Representatives.
In 1860, William embarked on a military reform. The Prussian government asked the state council to agree to allocate 10 million thalres, increase the peacetime military strength from 140000 to 217000, extend the active service period and cancel the national reserve. William appointed General Albrecht von Ron, Secretary of the Army, to carry out the work. On February 10, Ron proposed a reform plan to the parliament, changing the service term of the standing army from two years to three years, and increasing the number of conscripts from 40000 to 63000 each year. William also strengthened military training, equipped the army with advanced weapons, and appointed senior officers. It was then that William's adjutant, Old Mao Qi, was appointed Chief of the General Staff. The bourgeoisie is worried that this reform will weaken the influence of the bourgeoisie in the army, and that an army deeply influenced by Junker may become a tool against the bourgeoisie and the state parliament. Therefore, they opposed William's reform and refused to pay huge amounts of money every year.
Statue of King William I of Germany
Statue of King William I of Germany
On January 2, 1861, William IV died of illness. Prince William, the regent, succeeded to the throne and was known as William I. When he ascended the throne, he issued a declaration to safeguard the king's eternal rights. In the 1861 parliamentary election, the Progressive Party, which represents the interests of the free bourgeoisie, won the majority of seats and proposed that the parliament should supervise the government's current expenditure, and the funds must be strictly controlled within the scope approved by the parliament. The struggle around military reform involves constitutional rights. The essence of this Prussian "constitutional dispute" is whether to implement the rule of the king or the rule of parliament.
William I insisted on military reform despite the opposition of the free bourgeoisie. He paid for the army without parliamentary approval. On March 11, 1861, he ordered the dissolution of the House of Representatives and the establishment of a new cabinet composed of feudal bureaucrats. The fierce attacks of the parliament led the court into chaos. William I was helpless and even announced at the cabinet meeting that he would rather give up the throne and still adhere to military reform. He recalled the crown prince to Berlin. The crown prince and cabinet ministers did not agree with the king's abdication, fearing that it would lead to revolution. At this time, the Secretary of the Army Ron made a plan to recall the Ambassador to Paris, Otto von Bismarck, to China. On September 22, William I and Bismarck held talks for more than two hours in the Belsbell Palace. William asked, "Are you willing to be a minister and carry out military reform?" Bismarck replied, "Yes.". William asked again, "Are you prepared to carry out the plan of expanding the army against the majority of parliament and its decision?" Bismarck expressed his willingness. On September 23, William I decided to appoint Bismarck as prime minister.
Bismarck ignored the bourgeois majority in parliament's veto of government appropriations, and ignored their "unconstitutional" accusations. He simply left parliament and paid for military reform without authorization. When William was worried that the people would rise for revolution, Bismarck said: "Up to now, your majesty has only one way, that is, war! Your majesty cannot be subjugated! He who will die is as dignified as Charles I, and must not be as weak as Louis XVI." William I listened to Bismarck. According to the Prussian Constitution, the Prime Minister only needs to listen to the king, and does not need to speak to Parliament. Although Bismarck said that his working relationship with William was that a minister was loyal to his officers, in fact Bismarck had the real power to manage internal affairs and foreign affairs. After disagreeing with William several times, Bismarck threatened to resign, and William had to agree with Bismarck.

Dynasty War
Kaiser Wilhelm I
Kaiser Wilhelm I
After Bismarck came to power, he vigorously pursued the "iron and blood policy" and advocated the reunification of Germany by Prussia by force. Later, he made bold and ingenious use of international disputes and favorable opportunities to achieve the reunification of Germany through three dynastic wars. In 1863, Bismarck formulated a program for unifying Germany, prepared to form an alliance with Russia and France, excluded Austria from the German Confederation, and let Prussia unify Germany. In 1864, Prussia launched a war against Denmark and occupied Holstein and Schleswig. On June 16, 1866, another war was launched against Austria. At that time, Austria, Bavaria, Saxony, Hanover, Baden, Wudenburg, Hessen and other states were hostile to Prussia. In Prussia itself, the conflict between the king and parliament has not been resolved. Some noble landlords did not understand why Bismarck started the war. William I was also worried about breaking with Austria at the beginning, and was not keen to fight with Austria. But Bismarck tried to persuade the king and push him into the war. On September 3, the PLA and Austria met in Sadova. This is a decisive battle. The PLA won the battle. William I and the generals around him were intoxicated with the victory and wanted to march into Vienna. Bismarck persuaded William that it was only necessary to let Austria withdraw from the German Confederation, abandon Holstein, and agree to form a new North German Alliance with Prussia as the leader. If Austria accepts these conditions, it should immediately order the army to "turn left and back". William I was stubborn and threatened to abdicate if he could not annex the land and population suitable for his power according to Prussian habits. Bismarck warned King Pu that if the Pu army went deep into the Austrian territory, it would be just like Napoleon III. Bismarck was most worried about French interference in the Franco Prussian War. He also threatened William with resignation to ask the king to find another prime minister. The king finally relented to Bismarck. On July 26, 1866, Puao signed the Nicolsburg Armistice Agreement, and officially signed the Prague Peace Treaty on August 23. In August 1866, 24 states and 3 free cities of North Germany concluded an alliance treaty, establishing the North German Alliance, with William I as its chairman and Bismarck as prime minister, thus establishing Prussia's hegemony in Germany.
In 1868, a bourgeois revolution took place in Spain, expelling Queen Isabel II. Bismarck tried to buy off the Spanish provisional government and proposed that Prince Leopold Hohensoren, the cousin of the King of Prussia, inherit the vacant Spanish throne. William I did not know this at first. He wrote to Bismarck and said: "The attachment seems like a bolt from the blue to me! Another Hohensorum family member came to be the candidate for the throne, and also the candidate for the Spanish throne.". Although William had yielded to Bismarck, he was very uneasy.
On July 9, the French Ambassador to Berlin Beinei had to go to Ames, the healing place of King Pradesh, in advance to meet with King Pradesh, and asked to stop Leopold from inheriting the Spanish throne. William said he would try to persuade Leopold to abdicate the Spanish throne.
On July 13, the French ambassador was ordered to ask King Pu to give a written guarantee that Tiriopold would not be allowed to succeed to the Spanish throne at any time in the future. King Pu thinks it is impossible to make such a guarantee.
On July 14, when William left Ames for Koblenz, he also met Benedetti at the station, saying "he has nothing to say except what he has already said to the ambassador, but negotiations on this issue will continue in Berlin." Before William I left Ames, he ordered his entourage, Counsellor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Abeken, to inform Bismarck of the matter by telegraph. Bismarck was having dinner with Army Secretary Ron and Chief of Staff Mao Qi when he received the telegram. Bismarck deleted the message and changed the original mild tone to an insult to the French government. Once this message was released, France declared war on Germany on July 19.
At the beginning of the Franco Prussian War, William I made a royal speech, calling on the German nation to go all out to resist the atrocities of France. He personally commanded the German army. On September 2, 200000 German troops launched an offensive against Sedang City, and 680 cannons opened fire violently. The French army was defeated and Napoleon III was taken prisoner. At this point, the forces hindering the reunification of Germany have been eliminated. At the end of 1870, the four states of South Germany issued a statement announcing their accession to the German Federation.
William I was on the battlefield
William I was on the battlefield
On December 10, 1870, under Bismarck's plan, the Northern German Union sent a delegation to Versailles to ask William I to be the emperor of the German Empire. Bavarian fairy tale king Ludwig II was also forced to sign a letter drafted by Bismarck, suggesting that King Pu accept the crown. On January 18, 1871, William I, surrounded by princes and nobles, was crowned Emperor of the German Empire in the Mirror Hall of Versailles, announcing the establishment of the German Empire. In his toast at the celebration banquet, the king said to the three heroes: You, General Ron, sharpened your sword; You; General Maoqi; Correctly used the sword: You, Count Bismarck, have been in charge of my policy so excellently for many years. Whenever I thank the army, I especially think of you three. " After the ceremony, the Northern German Confederation (1867-1871) was transformed into the German Empire (Kaiserreich, 1871-1918). The empire was a feudal country; The emperor is the head of state and president of the feudal monarchs. The new territories include Bavaria, Wuerttemberg and Saxony kings; Baden and Archduke Hessen; Hamburg, Lubeck and Bremen Senate. William reluctantly accepted the title "German Emperor". He once proposed the title of "German Emperor", but apparently the feudal monarchs would not accept it.
In Bismarck's memoirs, Bismarck believed that William was a traditional, courteous and absolutely polite gentleman, and a true Prussian officer. Some of his judgments are occasionally influenced by the "benevolence of women".

Postwar years
Caricature of William
Caricature of William
On May 11, 1878, when William I was travelling down the street in a convertible to the banyan tree in Berlin, Hedel, a hardware worker, fired a shot at him, but it missed. William was not injured. On June 2 of the same year, a man named Carl Nobelin shot the emperor with a shotgun and killed himself after injuring William. This became the reason why the Law on the Elimination of Socialism was established on October 21, 1878. The legislation was proposed by Bismarck's government and strongly supported by Congress. The purpose of the law is to combat the actions of socialists and the working class, and deprive the German Social Democratic Party of its legal status. It prohibits all the publications of Party organizations, mass workers' organizations, socialists and the working class, and can be used to adjudicate or confiscate the literary works of socialists, but it also compensates social democrats. The legislation is expanded every two or three years. Although the punishment was severe, the influence of the Social Democratic Party continued to expand. Under the pressure of a large number of working-class actions, the law was repealed on October 1, 1890. On March 9, 1888, William I died at the age of 91.