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190 Section 14. POTSDAM. History.
for the province of Brandenburg and the frequent residence of the
imperial court, is charmingly situated on the Potsdamer Werder,
an island in the Havel, which here expands into a series of lakes
and is bounded by wooded hills. The town, first mentioned in the
10th cent., is of ancient Slavonic origin, but was of no importance
until the Great Elector founded the original town-palace. It
is indebted for its modern splendour to Frederick William I. and
still more to Frederick the Great, who generally resided at Pots¬
dam. From the reign of the latter date the present Town Palace
and the Palace of Sanssouci, the interiors of which are among the
finest examples of the then prevalent rococo style, and also the
gorgeous New Palace and a large part of the royal parks. The
Marble Palace, in the incipient 'classicist' style, was built by
Frederick William II.; Frederick William III. began the Church
of St. Nicholas and laid out the park on the Pfauen-Insel. Frederick
William TV., while still crown-prince, erected the Charlottenhof,
a charming work in the developed classicist style, and after he
came to the throne added, besides the Priedens-Kirche and the
church of Sakrow, the Orangery and the building on the Pflngstberg,
two highly effective examples of the Italian decorative style. In
the Gothic palace of Babelsberg, built by William I. before he be¬
came king, we recognize the influence of Rhenish romanticism.
The edifices at Glienicke, designed by Schinkel for Prince Charles,
are of greater artistic importance. — The royal influence extended
even to the private buildings. Frederick William I. erected a
Dutch quarter, and Frederick the Great adorned the main streets
with reproductions of the fagades of Italian palazzi. On the whole,
the older parts of Potsdam present as monotonous an appearance as
Versailles.
Potsdam is the true cradle of the Prussian army. From Potsdam
Frederick William I. issued the regulations for the promotion of
uniformity of drill and discipline in the army, which he had previ¬
ously tested on his gigantic grenadiers. Every regiment had an¬
nually to send a detachment of officers, non-commissioned officers,
and men to Potsdam, where the king personally demonstrated to
them the application of his regulations. To this day the numerous
soldiers, especially the picked men of the regiments of guards f,
form the most characteristic feature in the streets of the town.
t The garrison consists of the 1st regiment of Foot Guards, a bat¬
talion of Riflemen of the Guards, the Gardes du Corps, the Hussars of
the Life Guards, the 1st and 3rd regiments of Lancer Guards (Uhlans),
and the 2nd and 4th regiments of the Field Artillery Guards. The In¬
fantry Instruction Battalion, to which officers, non-commissioned officers,
and men from all regiments in the German army (with the exception of the
Bavarian contingent) are temporarily attached from April 15th to Oct. 1st,
serves the same purpose as the above-mentioned arrangement of Fred¬
erick William I.