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Following instructions from Secretary of State John Hay, Ambassador Tower will delay his departure from the United States to attend the unveiling of the Frederick the Great statue.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-09-12
In a speech reprinted by The Erie Railroad Employees’ Magazine, Martin W. Littleton comments on Theodore Roosevelt’s boundless confidence and self-assurance, saying that “he has never encountered a structure of authority which he would not change; a form of government which he would not alter; a society which he would not transform.” In traveling across Europe, Littleton speculates that Roosevelt contemplated both Frederick II, King of Prussia, and Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, and thought that he could have done better.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-03
Transcript of a speech given by George Otto Trevelyan at a bookseller’s dinner. Trevelyan discusses many matters relating to bookselling, book buying, and publishing. He also discusses his reminiscences with various literary figures and reflects on the relationship between literature and politics.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-10-17
Military Secretary Fred C. Ainsworth reports to General G. C. Gillespie that the Military Secretary’s Office has not found any records relating to a sword given to George Washington by Frederick II, King of Prussia, but suggests that the Washington Papers collection held by the State Department may have some information on the subject. He also cites a source which quotes Henry T. Tuckerman as having mentioned the sword.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-10-18
Arthur von Briesen responds to Major General G. L. Gillespie’s request for further information on Briesen’s statement that he had gotten his facts regarding a sword supposedly gifted by King Frederick II of Prussia to George Washington from Mr. Ward. He has since come to believe that the story may be rather different, based on a book by Friedrich Kapp which says that the sword came from the sword-maker Theophilus Alte of Solingen. This is further reinforced by a letter from Washington to John Quincy Adams.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-10-19
This extract from George Benton Lossing’s Life of Washington suggests that George Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River and surprising of the Hessian mercenaries, ‘awakened in Frederick of Prussia the sympathy and high appreciation which he manifested by the gift of a sword, with an inscription exclusively in praise of Washington’s generalship.’
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-10-18
In an 1873 report, the New York State Library discusses the provenance of George Washington’s dress sword, which was given to the state by Washington’s great grand nephew, Lewis William Washington.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1873
Arthur von Briesen informs President Roosevelt that he is currently working on a reply to the charge that Roosevelt is an enemy of Germans, and will send him a copy of it once it is completed. He also tells Roosevelt about his recent historical investigations into a sword that was said to have been given by Frederick II, King of Prussia, to George Washington
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-10-12
In a commencement address to the faculty and students of the University of Illinois, German Ambassador Hermann Speck von Sternburg urges the graduating students to use their theoretical and practical knowledge for the public good.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-09-09
A number of historical figures enjoy the pleasant atmosphere of “Sheol” after suffering the flames of Hell. At left is a dejected Devil sitting beneath a sign that states, “This Business is Removed to Sheol, Opposite.” Among those ferried across the river by “Charon” are “Hypatia, Fanny Elssler, Voltaire, Frederick [the] Great, Socrates, J. Offenbach, Darwin, J. S. Mill, Rousseau, George Sand, Galileo, Jefferson, Th. Paine, Goethe, [and] H. Heine.” Caption: According to the new version of the Old Testament, many respectable people who have been writhing in the old fashioned Hell will have to be transferred to the pleasant watering-place known as “Sheol.” This is Puck’s notion of the evolution of Hell to Sheol.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1885-05-27
Theodore Roosevelt, on his way to the “Hall of Fame,” passes between two rows of kings, emperors, military leaders, statesmen, and others, including, on the left, “Alexander, Nimrod, Caesar, Joshua, Solomon, Moses,” and possibly Ramses I, King of Egypt; and on the right, “Wellington, Washington, Napoleon I, Frederick the Great, Cromwell, Shakespere [sic], Luther,” and two unidentified kings, possibly William I and Richard I, kings of England.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1912-09-04
Acting Secretary of State Loomis encloses a dispatch from Ambassador Tower regarding an interview Tower had with Emperor William II. The Emperor thanked President Roosevelt for a recent friendly letter and stated that the statue of King Frederick II was ready to be shipped to the United States.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-01-23
Ambassador Tower informs Secretary of State Hay of his interview with German Emperor William II, who intends to send a silver setting used on state occasions for display at an upcoming St. Louis World’s Fair. William II also asked to inform President Roosevelt that the statue of Frederick the Great is finished and can be shipped at any time.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-01-04
Secretary of State Hay encloses a letter for President Roosevelt’s approval expressing agreement with Emperor William II’s suggestion that the presentation of the statue of Frederick the Great be postponed until spring 1904.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1903-03-03
Germany has offered a statue of Frederick the Great to the United States and its acceptance is creating political difficulties for President Roosevelt. Andrew Dickson White offers several reasons why the statue should be accepted and suggests where it should be located.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1902-06-03
In honor of the cordial welcome given to his brother, Prince Heinrich, by the citizens of the United States, and the long history of friendship between the two nations, Emperor William II wishes to present a bronze statue of King Frederick II to be placed at a site in Washington, D.C.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1902-05-14
There is some confusion over the offer of a statue of Frederick the Great from Kaiser Wilhelm II and President Roosevelt’s response to the offer.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1902-05-16