Frederick II

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Frederick II ( the Great) (1712–86) King of Prussia (1740–86). Succeeding his father, Frederick William I, he made Prussia a major European power. In the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–48), Frederick gained the province of Silesia from Austria. During the Seven Years' War (1756–63), his brilliant generalship preserved the kingdom from a superior hostile alliance. In 1760, Austro-Russian forces reached Berlin, but Russia's subsequent withdrawal from the war enabled Frederick to emerge triumphant. He directed Prussia's remarkable recovery from the devastation of war. Gaining further territory in the first partition of Poland (1772), he renewed the contest against Austria in the War of the Bavarian Succession (1778–79). Artistic and intellectual, he built the palace of Sans Souci, and was a gifted musician.

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Frederick II