Wilhelm II of Germany facts for kids

Wilhelm II

Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert von Hohenzollern, Wilhelm II of Prussia and Germany, (27 January 1859–4 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and the last King of Prussia, ruling from 1888 to 1918. He went to live in the Netherlands and abdicated (resigned) as King and Emperor. He died at Huis Doorn and is buried there because he ordered that he did not want to be buried in Nazi Germany. Wilhelm died on June 4, 1941.

Kaiser Wilhelm II was born on January 27, 1859. He was the oldest child in his family. His father was Prince Frederick of Prussia. His mother was Princess Victoria, the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. He was born with a disabled arm. He got married in 1881. His wife was Augusta Victoria. They had seven children. He first studied at the Kassel Gymnasium. Secondly, he studied at the University of Bonn. He became leader of Germany in 1888. He became the leader after his father died.

Wilhelm was a strong military man. He believed in strengthening Germany’s armed forces. He led the German armed forces during the war.

Titles and styles

27 January 1859 – 9 March 1888: His Royal Highness Prince Wilhelm of Prussia
9 March 1888 – 15 June 1888: His Imperial Highness and Royal Highness The German Crown Prince, Crown Prince of Prussia
15 June 1888 – 18 November 1918: His Imperial and Royal Majesty The German Emperor, King of Prussia

Images for kids

Wilhelm with his father, in Highland dress, in 1862
In this photo of Wilhelm, his right hand is holding his left hand, which was affected by Erb's palsy.
Wilhelm II, German Emperor
"Dropping the Pilot", a famous caricature by Sir John Tenniel (1820–1914), first published in the British magazine Punch, 29 March 1890
Silver 5-mark coin of Wilhelm II.
Emperor Wilhelm II talks with Ethiopians at the Tierpark Hagenbeck in Hamburg in 1909.
The Nine Sovereigns at Windsor for the funeral of King Edward VII, photographed on 20 May 1910. Standing, from left to right: King Haakon VII of Norway, Tsar Ferdinand of the Bulgarians, King Manuel II of Portugal and the Algarve, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and Prussia, King George I of the Hellenes and King Albert I of the Belgians. Seated, from left to right: King Alfonso XIII of Spain, King George V of the United Kingdom and King Frederick VIII of Denmark.
1898 China imperialism cartoon: A Mandarin official helplessly looks on as China, depicted as a pie, is about to be carved up by Queen Victoria (Britain), Wilhelm II (Germany), Nicholas II (Russia), Marianne (France), and a samurai (Japan).

A 1904 British cartoon commenting on the Entente cordiale: John Bull walking off with Marianne, turning his back on Wilhelm II, whose saber is shown extending from his coat.

Wilhelm II with Nicholas II of Russia in 1905, wearing the military uniforms of each other's nations
Wilhelm II and Winston Churchill during a military autumn maneuver near Breslau, Silesia (Wrocław, Poland) in 1906
Emperor Wilhelm with the Grand Duke of Baden, Prince Oskar of Prussia, the Grand Duke of Hesse, the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Prince Louis of Bavaria, Prince Max of Baden and his son, Crown Prince Wilhelm, at pre-war military maneuvers in autumn 1909
A composite image of Wilhelm II with German generals
Emperor Wilhelm in conversation with the victor of Liège, General Otto von Emmich; in the background the generals Hans von Plessen (middle) and Moriz von Lyncker (right).
Italian poster from 1915 showing Wilhelm II biting into the world. The text reads "The glutton – too hard."
Hindenburg, Wilhelm II, and Ludendorff in January 1917
Wilhelm II's tomb in Doorn, Netherlands
Wilhelm and his first wife Augusta Viktoria
With second wife, Hermine, and her daughter, Princess Henriette
Portrait by Max Koner (1890)
Caricature by Olaf Gulbransson 1909: "Manoeuvre: Emperor William II explains the enemy's positions to Prince Ludwig of Bavaria"
The Huis Doorn in 1925
Wilhelm in 1933
Huis Doorn in the Netherlands