“The Last Kaiser: A Biography of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia”, by Tyler Whittle

 

368 pages, Times Books, ISBN-13: 978-0812907162

I picked up my copy of The Last Kaiser: A Biography of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia by Tyler Whittle (or rather, Michael Sidney Tyler-Whittle) from John K. King Books on Lafayette Boulevard in Downtown Detroit, one of my favorite used book hunting grounds that my Dad and I used to make semi-annual excursions to (I’ve mentioned this before). We here in the States have a very specific idea of just who and what Kaiser Bill was (assuming any of us remember, that is), with “Warmonger” topping the list. But according to Whittle, Wilhelm – contrary to allied propaganda – didn’t want war, especially the two-front war that was the dread of every German leader since…well, forever. But the propaganda of the Allied powers was a powerful thing, and any attention to truth and balance was mostly nonexistent or distorted (and the winners write the history).

There is, of course, more to the story. Wilhelm had a tempestuous relationship with his parents – they would be Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl, Frederick III of Germany and Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa, eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert – seeing as they were reforming liberals and he was a reactionary aristocrat, but Whittle makes it sound like family meant a great deal to him (he got on well enough with King George V and seemed to really like Tsar Nicholas II, in a condescending manner). His mother never ceased to consider herself British and looked down on the German court and culture as inferior to Victorian Britain, while his father was out of step with public opinion, being too liberal for the prevailing political climate. Wilhelm compensated by becoming very nationalistic, while his parent’s exceedingly high standards meant that they never saw Wilhelm as being never quite good enough.

While reading this biography it became quite clear – to me, at any rate – that Wilhelm’s life, character and attitudes were shaped by his left arm. I’ll explain: his was a breech birth, being born feet-first instead of head-first, and so the attending physician forcibly pulled the left arm downwards, tearing the brachial plexus, then continued to grasp the left arm to rotate the infant’s trunk and free the right arm, but permanently injuring the left arm and causing it to be withered and half the size of his right for the rest of his life. From a mental point of view – what with all of the ipecac and chloroform Victoria was given, along with Wilhelm’s hypoxic state at birth – it all possibly gave Kaiser Bill mild brain damage which manifested itself in his subsequent hyperactive and erratic behavior, limited attention span and impaired social abilities. Indeed, the way he behaved even in adulthood made him seem as a child who never grew up.

Anyway…Kaiser Bill, under Whittle’s pen, actually comes across as a complicated though not unlikable man with his share of strengths and weaknesses, a shocking revelation to me, seeing as I always thought of him as a warmongering loud mouth. He overcame a very difficult birth disability at great sacrifice, became Kaiser at least ten years too early for his own (or Germany’s, or Europe’s) good and was really caught in profound international currents not of his own making (oh, and he was a big fan of PG Wodehouse). For opponents of the time and later detractors there is enough in a few of William’s speeches and actions to condemn him, which they certainly did; however, the countervailing evidence unearthed by Whittle suggest a much more complex man, and his balanced interpretation is a far more accurate picture of a man who should, perhaps, have been an actor rather than an emperor. Kaiser Bill, we hardly knew ye.