The Four Greatest Prussians of Unter den Linden

Standing on Unter den Linden, we have to take a moment for the four greatest Prussians who ever lived, because this boulevard practically breathes their legacy.

Start with Frederick the Great, who ruled Prussia from 1740 to 1786. He won wars, reformed government, and played the flute brilliantly. But perhaps his boldest move was calling himself the "first servant of the state" at a time when kings claimed they answered to no one. That was a radical idea.

Then there's Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, nicknamed "Marshal Forward." At 71 years old, an age when most generals had long retired, he rode to the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 and helped Wellington finish off Napoleon for good. Sheer stubbornness turned into history.

Hans Sigismund von Lestwitz is less famous but equally important. During the Battle of Torgau in 1760, his daring charge saved the Prussian army from collapse. Frederick rewarded him personally. A man who shows up at exactly the right moment tends to be remembered.

And finally, August Neidhardt von Gneisenau, born poor in 1760, rose to field marshal through pure talent. After Napoleon crushed Prussia in 1806, Gneisenau rebuilt the army from scratch into a modern fighting force. Without him, the liberation of German lands might never have happened.