The King of Prussia, Fredrick the Great (1712 - 1786) at the table in the Sans Souci Palace where distinguished notables, including Voltaire were entertained. Original Artwork: A Painting by Adolf von Menzel entitled 'The Round Table at Sans Souci'.. ..............................Frederick the Great dominated the 18th Century in German history. ................................... He was a great general - brought Prussia to victory in the Seven Years War against 4 great powers of Europe; conquered and held Silesia and parts of Poland. During his rule, he doubled Prussian territory. He was the best strategist in the 18th century. The battles of Rossbach, Leuthen, Hohenfriedberg are his famous victories, but there were many other victories and also a few defeats. But after those defeats, he always came back. He was fearless in combat and he really cared about his soldiers, unlike most other European rulers of the time. ........................... He was a very good ruler. He built 330 schools and made them compulsory. Frederick made great agricultural reforms and increased productive land by drying-out marshes and bringing in 300,000 immigrants to farm the land. He was the first European ruler to recognize the value of the potato ( before him, the potato was considered to be a devilish plant and was only grown for its flowers) He banned duels, torture and corporal punishment and he was religiously tolerant. .............................. He was a musician and philosopher - wrote 4 symphonies and about 100 sonatas and he was friends with Voltaire and many famous philosophers and artists of the time.................................................................................................................................... The painter, Adolph Friedrich Erdmann von Menzel, 1815 – 1905, was a German artist noted for drawings, etchings, and paintings. Along with Caspar David Friedrich, he is considered one of the two most prominent German artists of the 19th century, and was the most successful artist of his era in Germany................................. His popularity in his native country, owing especially to politically propagandistic works, was such that few of his major paintings left Germany, as many were quickly acquired by museums in Berlin. Menzel's graphic works and drawings were more widely disseminated; these, along with informal paintings not initially intended for display, have largely accounted for his posthumous reputation............................. Although he travelled in order to find subjects for his art, to visit exhibitions, and to meet with other artists, Menzel spent most of his life in Berlin, and was, despite numerous friendships, by his own admission detached from others. It is likely that he felt socially estranged for physical reasons alone—Menzel had a large head, and stood about four foot six inches.