The Cabinet of Three Counts (German - Drei-Grafen-Kabinett) was an unofficial triumvirate which dominated the politics of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1702 to 1710.
It was Kolbe who helped the Brandenburg Elector Frederick III to gain the title of King in Prussia in 1701. In return he was awarded the title Count of Wartenberg and the office of Prime Minister in 1702. The king interfered little in Wartenberg's dealings who gave the post of Geheimer Rat (equivalent to Privy Councillor) to General Field Marshall Wartensleben while the Count of Wittgenstein was charged with the finances of the state. Taxes on consumption (the so called Akzise) and land were raised drastically and new taxes, e.g. for wigs, hats, boots, socks, and coaches, were introduced. For the consumption of tea, coffee, and hot chocolate two Thalers per year had to be paid. Unmarried women had to pay a "maiden tax" and poorer people were especially hard hit by a tax on salt.
It was only after the plague of 1709 and the famine that went with it, that an independent report uncovered the extent of the cabinet's corruption. First, Frederick had Wittgenstein arrested and incarcerated at the Spandau Citadel near Berlin with the crowd accompanying the coach that brought him there and shouting he should be hanged - he was set free again, though, after he paid a hefty fine. Wartenberg was dismissed but was granted an annual pension and left Prussia for Frankfurt am Main where he died in 1712. Wartensleben only had to give up his military offices but otherwise remained in power and continued to serve under Frederick's successor Frederick William I.
Sources
Samuel Buchholz: Versuch einer Geschichte der Churmark Brandenburg, Vierter Teil: neue Geschichte, Berlin 1767, Seiten 350-353
Werner Schmidt: Friedrich I. - Kurfürst von Brandenburg König in Preußen, Heinrich Hugendubel Verlag, München 2004
PreußenJahrBuch - Ein Almanach, MD-Berlin, Berlin 2000
Günter Barudio: Weltgeschichte - Das Zeitalter des Absolutismus und der Aufklärung 1648-1779, Band 25, Weltbild Verlag, Augsburg 1998, ISBN3-89350-989-5
Gustav Adolf Harald Stenzel: Geschichte des Preussischen Staats, Dritter Teil, Verlag Friedrich Perthes, Hamburg 1841
Frederick William I, known as the "Soldier King", was King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until his death in 1740, as well as Prince of Neuchâtel. Frederick William instituted major military reforms, and expanded the army to new limits. He also made efforts to reduce corruption in his state and centralized his authority during his 27 years reign, cementing Prussia as a regional power. His other notable decisions would be the selling of Prussian overseas colonies and the foundation of the Canton system, as well as the conquest of the port of Stettin. He was succeeded by his son, Frederick the Great.
The Bailiwick of Brandenburg of the Chivalric Order of Saint John of the Hospital at Jerusalem, commonly known as the Order of Saint John or the Johanniter Order, is the German Protestant branch of the Knights Hospitaller, the oldest surviving chivalric order, which generally is considered to have been founded at Jerusalem in 1099.
Johannes Voigt was a German historian born in Bettenhausen, which today is situated in the district of Schmalkalden-Meiningen.
The House of Finck von Finckenstein is a noble family classified as Uradel. It is one of the oldest Prussian aristocratic families extant, dating back to the 12th century in the Duchy of Carinthia.
Eberhard Christoph Balthasar Freiherr von Danckelmann was a German official who served as Prime Minister of Brandenburg-Prussia from 1692 to 1697.
Sophia Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was Queen consort in Prussia by marriage to King Frederick I of Prussia. She was famed for her beauty.
Johann Kasimir Kolbe, Graf von Wartenberg was the first ever Minister-President of the kingdom of Prussia, and the head of the "Cabinet of Three Counts".
Alexander Hermann Graf von Wartensleben was an officer in the armies of various German states, a Prussian Generalfeldmarschall and a member of the Cabinet of Three Counts with August David zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein and Johann Kasimir Kolbe von Wartenberg - due to their heavy taxation, this was also known as the "three great W(oes)" of Prussia.
Graf August David of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein was a Prussian politician. He was a member of the Cabinet of Three Counts, with Johann Kasimir Kolbe von Wartenberg and Alexander Hermann, Count of Wartensleben, also known due to their heavy taxation as "the great W(oes)" of Prussia. As a favorite of Johann Kasimir Kolbe von Wartenberg, he was later imprisoned at Spandau Citadel, fined 70,000 thalers and banished subsequently by Frederick William due to corruption, wastage and inefficiency.
Otto Friedrich von der Groeben was a Prussian explorer, officer and German Generalleutnant in Polish service.
Karl Friedrich Albrecht, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, a grandson of Frederick William of Brandenburg and son of Margrave Albert Frederick of Brandenburg-Schwedt, was a Prussian military officer and the Herrenmeister of the Order of Saint John.
Jean de Forcade de Biaix, aka Jean de Forcade, Marquis de Biaix, aka Jean-Quirin de Forcade de Biaix, aka Jean Quérin von Forcade, Herr von Biaix, aka Johann Querin de Forcade, Herr zu Biaix, aka Johann Quirin von Forkade de Biaix was a Huguenot, a descendant of the noble family of Forcade and Lieutenant General in the service of the Kingdom of Prussia. He was the Regimentschef of the 23rd Prussian Infantry Regiment, Commandant of the Royal Residence in Berlin, Gouverneur militaire of Berlin, a Knight of the Order of the Black Eagle a member of King Frederick I of Prussia's "Tobacco Collegium". and president of the Grand Directoire 1718–1729, the deliberative and decision-making body responsible for all Huguenot affairs in the kingdom.
The Equestrian statue of Frederick the Great on Unter den Linden avenue in Berlin's Mitte district commemorates King Frederick II. of Prussia. Created from 1839 to 1851 by Christian Daniel Rauch, it is a masterpiece of the Berlin school of sculpture, marking the transition from neoclassicism to realism. The bronze statue shows "The Old Fritz" dressed in military uniform, ermine coat and tricorne hat on horseback above the leading generals, statesmen, artists and scientist of his time. Walled in during World War II, it was disassembled by East Germany in 1950, reassembled in Sanssouci Park in 1963, and returned to its original location in 1980.
Friedrich Wilhelm Quirin von Forcade de Biaix, baptized Quirin Frideric de Forcade, aka Friedrich Quirin von Forcade, aka Frédéric Quérin de Forcade was a Royal Prussian Lieutenant General, the second son of Jean de Forcade de Biaix, an early Huguenot immigrant to Brandenburg-Prussia and a descendant of the noble family of Forcade. He was one of Frederick the Great's most active and most treasured officers. He was wounded three times and once left for dead on the battlefield. Together with his wife, he fathered 23 children.
Friedrich Wilhelm von Forcade de Biaix, aka Frideric Guillaume de Forcade was a Royal Prussian Colonel, Schwadronschef of the 2nd Grenadier Company in the 24th Prussian Infantry Regiment, recipient of the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order of merit for heroism, Knight of the Order of Pour le Mérite (1774), Commandant of Frankfurt/Oder, and Presbyter of the French congregation of Frankfurt/Oder.
Prince Frederick Henry Charles of Prussia was a Prussian prince and army officer.
Friedrich Wilhelm Weidemann or Wiedemann was a German painter. From 1702 he worked as court painter to Frederick William I, prince and later king of Prussia. He also produced portraits of several other members of the Prussian royal family
The 13 Cuirassier regiments of Old Prussia were formed in the mid-17th to mid-18th centuries, and formed the basis of Frederick the Great's vaunted cavalry.
Hartwig Karl von Wartenberg was the Royal Prussian major general and Proprietor (Inhaber) of the Hussars Regiment No. 3.
Countess Sophie Polyxena Concordia of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein, German: Sophia Polyxena Concordia Gräfin zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein, official titles: Gräfin zu Sayn, Wittgenstein und Hohenstein, Frau zu Homburg, Vallendar, Neumagen, Lohra und Klettenberg, was a countess from the House of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein and through marriage Fürstin of Nassau-Siegen.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
