1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:27,760 Speaker 1: Ridiculous History is a production of I Heart Radio. Welcome 2 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,920 Speaker 1: to the show Ridiculous Historians, and thank you for tuning in. 3 00:00:31,080 --> 00:00:33,280 Speaker 1: My name is Ben. I've got a question. Do you 4 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:37,640 Speaker 1: guys remember the band they Might be Giants? Maybe certainly do. Yeah, 5 00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:39,519 Speaker 1: I was doing a bit because it's like they might 6 00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:41,760 Speaker 1: be giants. I might remember they might be giants. I'm 7 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:43,479 Speaker 1: no old. By the way, Who are you? Oh, I'm 8 00:00:43,479 --> 00:00:45,000 Speaker 1: bet I said that? Yeah, I see. I can never 9 00:00:45,080 --> 00:00:47,000 Speaker 1: remember if you said it or not. That's super producer 10 00:00:47,040 --> 00:00:51,800 Speaker 1: Casey Pegram. Hello, Casey, you said you remember they might 11 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:55,040 Speaker 1: be Giants? Yeah? I remember the Istanbul song. I remember 12 00:00:55,720 --> 00:00:59,320 Speaker 1: Particle Man, Birdhouse in your Soul. Yeah, yeah, all the 13 00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:01,680 Speaker 1: stuff that kind of made us way into animanias so 14 00:01:02,360 --> 00:01:06,040 Speaker 1: and Animaniacs had some great music going on in general. Right, 15 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:08,520 Speaker 1: that song where they name all the countries. I was 16 00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:11,680 Speaker 1: just thinking about that. That's that's the one that's actually 17 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:15,319 Speaker 1: since we're talking a bit about nostalgia, that is the 18 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:19,360 Speaker 1: song that inspired me as a child to learn one 19 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:23,880 Speaker 1: of my many useless skills, which is uh naming all 20 00:01:24,040 --> 00:01:27,640 Speaker 1: you and recognized countries in the world, which I which 21 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:31,760 Speaker 1: I can do, uh, And you know is is completely useless. 22 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:33,640 Speaker 1: No one cares. And see how I can pull up 23 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:35,600 Speaker 1: a little lyric sheet of of the song and if 24 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:37,319 Speaker 1: you see, I can even do it. So it's you nit, 25 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:40,360 Speaker 1: says Canada. I'm actically Panama Hatiti Jam makeup au public 26 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:43,680 Speaker 1: dominic onback cover on Greenland No Salvador too, that's the song. Yeah, 27 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: I just wanted to see if I can the syllable. Absolutely, 28 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:51,720 Speaker 1: you nailed it. So we're talking about they might be 29 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:55,240 Speaker 1: Giants in a little bit of nostalgia, mainly because it's 30 00:01:55,280 --> 00:01:59,960 Speaker 1: such a creative band name, right, but also because today's 31 00:02:00,160 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: episode is about people who actually were giants, or they 32 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:07,960 Speaker 1: were called giants. Specifically, they were called the Potsdam or 33 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:13,240 Speaker 1: Potsdam giants. So here's the here's the stick. Today's story 34 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:18,359 Speaker 1: takes place in Prussia. Prussia at the time, and this 35 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:22,440 Speaker 1: is around the is leading up to the early eighteenth century, 36 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:26,320 Speaker 1: so just before then. Prussia at the time, it was 37 00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:31,079 Speaker 1: a military state, but it was poor. It didn't have 38 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:35,520 Speaker 1: a huge population, The land wasn't super fertile. They didn't 39 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:38,400 Speaker 1: have a ton of resources, you know, like mines or 40 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:43,359 Speaker 1: natural fisheries, and they didn't have many natural borders like rivers, 41 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:47,680 Speaker 1: or mountains and so on. It kind of blended into 42 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:50,799 Speaker 1: other German states in the west and then sort of 43 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:54,239 Speaker 1: washed into a gradient of Poland in the east. And 44 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:56,919 Speaker 1: this meant that it was pretty easy to invade. Turns 45 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:01,919 Speaker 1: out no connection to Russia whatsoever, completely different etymology. Yes, yeah, 46 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:05,480 Speaker 1: And now I mean you you may be like, where's Prussia? 47 00:03:05,520 --> 00:03:07,840 Speaker 1: What's Prussia about? Prussia no longer a thing, But there 48 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:10,200 Speaker 1: is a city in Pennsylvania called king of Prussia and 49 00:03:10,280 --> 00:03:13,840 Speaker 1: it's got a pretty nice outBut mall, yes, yeah, king 50 00:03:13,960 --> 00:03:18,079 Speaker 1: of Prussia always baffled me as far as names go. Actually, 51 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:20,760 Speaker 1: you know what, folks, while we're listening to today's episode, 52 00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:23,640 Speaker 1: just if it occurs to you, will you please write 53 00:03:23,720 --> 00:03:27,440 Speaker 1: to us and let us know your favorite weird town names. 54 00:03:27,800 --> 00:03:31,800 Speaker 1: There's Batman Australia. That's a real thing. Uh, King of Prussia, 55 00:03:31,880 --> 00:03:33,440 Speaker 1: I don't know. That's one of the best ones we 56 00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:35,280 Speaker 1: have here for sure. And now you're putting me on 57 00:03:35,320 --> 00:03:37,120 Speaker 1: the spot. I definitely have one that's to go to. 58 00:03:37,240 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 1: But it's it's escaping right now. See if I can 59 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:39,880 Speaker 1: comeup with it by the end of the episode. But 60 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:42,960 Speaker 1: today we are talking about obsession, We are talking about 61 00:03:43,240 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 1: the need to separate yourself from the herd, you know, 62 00:03:46,040 --> 00:03:48,200 Speaker 1: like to kind of like rise above the ranks, shall 63 00:03:48,280 --> 00:03:51,920 Speaker 1: we say, And that is exactly what King Frederick William 64 00:03:52,200 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 1: the First of Prussia tried to do, uh and what 65 00:03:55,560 --> 00:03:59,560 Speaker 1: ended up being a pretty creepy, kidnappy kind of weird way. Yes, 66 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:02,680 Speaker 1: so here's here's how we got here, so we said, 67 00:04:03,080 --> 00:04:06,360 Speaker 1: where we're setting the stage leading up to the eighteenth century. 68 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:10,640 Speaker 1: Since the fifteenth century or so, it was tough to 69 00:04:10,840 --> 00:04:12,600 Speaker 1: it was tough to be in charge of this thing 70 00:04:12,680 --> 00:04:17,240 Speaker 1: called Prussia. However, they had a skilled family of rulers. 71 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:20,160 Speaker 1: The oh, it's my turn for this one. Huh, the 72 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:26,600 Speaker 1: hohenzollerns h O h e n z o l l 73 00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:29,640 Speaker 1: e r n s oh a second age huh. Interest 74 00:04:29,800 --> 00:04:31,240 Speaker 1: I deferred to your and I would have thought it 75 00:04:31,240 --> 00:04:33,120 Speaker 1: would have been like an e with an umlaut. But 76 00:04:33,200 --> 00:04:36,720 Speaker 1: it's a saw. I think you did a better job 77 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:39,560 Speaker 1: I gave. I gave it my my best. Well, you know, 78 00:04:39,839 --> 00:04:42,040 Speaker 1: you also used to live in Germany so as a 79 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:45,360 Speaker 1: as a small German child. So it has since escaped 80 00:04:45,440 --> 00:04:49,280 Speaker 1: me that all of the culture and beautiful tradition of 81 00:04:49,320 --> 00:04:52,040 Speaker 1: the German people you still have the German shining. I 82 00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:58,000 Speaker 1: believe in her. So these rulers held Brandenburg since the 83 00:04:58,080 --> 00:05:03,280 Speaker 1: fifteenth century, and over time, through their diplomacy and political maneuvering, 84 00:05:03,560 --> 00:05:07,119 Speaker 1: they came to possess other dominions, including the original region 85 00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:09,960 Speaker 1: which was called Prussia and the East. And in the 86 00:05:10,080 --> 00:05:13,040 Speaker 1: seventeenth century it was just another part of this thing 87 00:05:13,200 --> 00:05:17,640 Speaker 1: called the Holy Roman Empire, great name, very dramatic, crazy 88 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:23,600 Speaker 1: little thing called the arominem Yes exactly. And in sixteen sixty, 89 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:27,440 Speaker 1: guy named Frederick William of the House of how do 90 00:05:27,520 --> 00:05:36,200 Speaker 1: we say? Oh? Yes, uh, this guy, Frederick William, he's 91 00:05:36,279 --> 00:05:39,120 Speaker 1: the grandfather of the main character of our story. He 92 00:05:39,240 --> 00:05:43,240 Speaker 1: inherited all of the all of the houses possessions, and 93 00:05:43,320 --> 00:05:47,200 Speaker 1: he said, look, we can't rely on this economy built 94 00:05:47,240 --> 00:05:49,920 Speaker 1: on agriculture and natural resources because you don't really have 95 00:05:50,360 --> 00:05:53,760 Speaker 1: enough of that. We can't count on natural borders like 96 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:56,320 Speaker 1: mountains to protect us because we don't have those either, right, 97 00:05:57,360 --> 00:06:02,320 Speaker 1: So he said, we need to become a militaristic state. Interesting, 98 00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:04,600 Speaker 1: by the way, there's gonna be a lot of Frederick's 99 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:07,039 Speaker 1: going on here. And this leneing is not the most 100 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:11,720 Speaker 1: creative namers of humans. Ah that's a shame. We'll get 101 00:06:11,800 --> 00:06:14,800 Speaker 1: him back eventually, though, I promise. So, yeah, it's true. 102 00:06:15,040 --> 00:06:18,800 Speaker 1: Frederick William William. I'm gonna go with the American pronunciation 103 00:06:18,839 --> 00:06:22,560 Speaker 1: so I don't sound like a tool. Frederick William. Uh yeah, 104 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:27,600 Speaker 1: of the house. Um, he like he said, he got 105 00:06:27,640 --> 00:06:30,360 Speaker 1: all of this stuff and decided, okay, Uh, it's he's 106 00:06:30,360 --> 00:06:33,839 Speaker 1: gonna start this obsession a generation before his son William 107 00:06:34,080 --> 00:06:38,560 Speaker 1: of becoming this kind of militaristic state. And this really 108 00:06:38,839 --> 00:06:41,120 Speaker 1: carries over. Okay, so let's let's let's go back to 109 00:06:41,320 --> 00:06:45,480 Speaker 1: grandfather who decides to assemble this army. Prussia was able 110 00:06:45,520 --> 00:06:50,080 Speaker 1: to advance its position by saying, hey, will we'll send 111 00:06:50,160 --> 00:06:52,839 Speaker 1: these troops over for you to help you with your 112 00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:56,240 Speaker 1: combat or with your you know, whatever you're doing in 113 00:06:56,360 --> 00:06:58,480 Speaker 1: the east or the west or so on. Uh, and 114 00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:02,440 Speaker 1: in return give some recognition. This comes to a head 115 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:07,600 Speaker 1: when Frederick William's son, another guy named Frederick, uses the 116 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:11,360 Speaker 1: military as leverage against the Emperor of the Holy Roman 117 00:07:11,440 --> 00:07:15,120 Speaker 1: Empire in seventeen o one. The Emperor says, hey, Prussia, 118 00:07:15,640 --> 00:07:18,320 Speaker 1: I need some I need some extra firepower in the 119 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 1: War of Spanish Succession, and Frederick says Okay, yeah, we'll 120 00:07:22,880 --> 00:07:26,760 Speaker 1: send you some of our awesome troops if you recognize 121 00:07:26,880 --> 00:07:30,400 Speaker 1: us as a kingdom. And that's how he became King 122 00:07:30,680 --> 00:07:38,800 Speaker 1: Frederick One of Prussia. Fast forward in seventeen, Frederick William, 123 00:07:39,080 --> 00:07:42,080 Speaker 1: who was the son of Frederick One, a lot of Freds, 124 00:07:42,080 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: you're right, ascends to the Prussian throne and pretty much 125 00:07:46,120 --> 00:07:48,640 Speaker 1: immediately gets weird with it. He definitely doesn't. I want 126 00:07:48,640 --> 00:07:51,400 Speaker 1: to point out one funny little distinction that I I've 127 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:53,280 Speaker 1: seen it printed a couple of different ways, but the 128 00:07:53,360 --> 00:07:57,000 Speaker 1: original Frederick, if I'm not mistaken, and please ridiculous historian 129 00:07:57,080 --> 00:08:00,320 Speaker 1: community taking a task on this, the original title was 130 00:08:00,600 --> 00:08:04,880 Speaker 1: King in Prussia, not King of Prussia, and then it 131 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:08,160 Speaker 1: became replaced with the subsequent generation after they got a 132 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:12,760 Speaker 1: little more leverage, um with King of Prussia. The original 133 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:14,880 Speaker 1: one was almost more like sort of king in the 134 00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:17,440 Speaker 1: North instead of King of the North. You know, it's 135 00:08:17,480 --> 00:08:20,880 Speaker 1: like you're a king, you're in your zone, but you're 136 00:08:20,920 --> 00:08:24,120 Speaker 1: not the king of it because the you know, there 137 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:27,720 Speaker 1: was the powers that be were still basically in charge, right, 138 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:30,360 Speaker 1: I see what you're saying, So you're you're kind of 139 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:35,959 Speaker 1: the uh, the head assistant exactly still that's fascinating. I 140 00:08:36,040 --> 00:08:38,520 Speaker 1: didn't think about that, but that's an important distinction, man. 141 00:08:38,640 --> 00:08:41,319 Speaker 1: Thank you for pointing that out. Sure thing. So, Frederick 142 00:08:41,320 --> 00:08:44,560 Speaker 1: William the First at this point, has spent his entire 143 00:08:44,720 --> 00:08:48,319 Speaker 1: life being told by everyone in a position of power 144 00:08:48,800 --> 00:08:53,119 Speaker 1: that the most important thing their kingdom has is the military. 145 00:08:53,640 --> 00:08:56,640 Speaker 1: As a result, armies are even more important to him 146 00:08:56,679 --> 00:08:59,040 Speaker 1: than they have been to his father or his grandfather. 147 00:08:59,679 --> 00:09:02,960 Speaker 1: And he got I said, he got weird with it, folks, 148 00:09:03,080 --> 00:09:06,679 Speaker 1: it's not hyperbole. Casey. I asked if you wanted to 149 00:09:06,760 --> 00:09:09,640 Speaker 1: hear the spoilers about this off air before we're recording, 150 00:09:09,880 --> 00:09:11,760 Speaker 1: and Casey said, no, I want to want to hear 151 00:09:11,800 --> 00:09:15,120 Speaker 1: it in real time. I'm a purist, you know, I wanna. 152 00:09:15,240 --> 00:09:17,199 Speaker 1: I wanna hear it like the folks out there in 153 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:22,439 Speaker 1: podcast land here at Casey on the case perfect. So 154 00:09:22,760 --> 00:09:25,400 Speaker 1: here we go, Casey, this is for you. When we 155 00:09:25,559 --> 00:09:30,240 Speaker 1: say that armies were important to Frederick William One, we 156 00:09:30,480 --> 00:09:34,319 Speaker 1: mean that he adored them on a personal level. He 157 00:09:34,480 --> 00:09:36,960 Speaker 1: was always hanging out with the boys. He was popping 158 00:09:37,000 --> 00:09:40,760 Speaker 1: open a cold one with the boys. Uh. He shrunk 159 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:46,120 Speaker 1: his own household budget and sold most of the horses, jewels, 160 00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:49,319 Speaker 1: and furniture that belonged to his father, such that he 161 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:52,439 Speaker 1: cut his expenses by about three quarters and spent all 162 00:09:52,520 --> 00:09:55,199 Speaker 1: the money he had saved on armies instead. Hain't the 163 00:09:55,280 --> 00:09:58,199 Speaker 1: word we're looking for. Maybe a spartan. He existed in 164 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:01,640 Speaker 1: this very militaristic and no frills kind of way because 165 00:10:01,679 --> 00:10:04,839 Speaker 1: he wanted to be respected by his guys. UM no 166 00:10:05,040 --> 00:10:07,920 Speaker 1: real indication that he would fight alongside them or anything, 167 00:10:08,120 --> 00:10:11,240 Speaker 1: but he definitely wanted to at least adopt that lifestyle. Um. 168 00:10:11,559 --> 00:10:14,120 Speaker 1: He was kind of known for being something of a 169 00:10:14,360 --> 00:10:17,800 Speaker 1: of a of a quack, uh a kuk An eccentric perhaps, 170 00:10:18,280 --> 00:10:20,439 Speaker 1: and he was known. There's a really great article on 171 00:10:20,520 --> 00:10:23,080 Speaker 1: rapid diffusion dot com that goes through some of history's 172 00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:26,520 Speaker 1: most peculiar rulers, and I love it because it refers 173 00:10:26,520 --> 00:10:28,959 Speaker 1: to Frederick and his tall blokes, which we're gonna get 174 00:10:28,960 --> 00:10:31,160 Speaker 1: to in a minute. But Um, according to this article, 175 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:35,240 Speaker 1: he would roam the streets of Berlin in kind of 176 00:10:35,360 --> 00:10:39,760 Speaker 1: like a worn uniform, UM, and he would actually just 177 00:10:39,840 --> 00:10:42,520 Speaker 1: kind of like walk up to anyone that he thought 178 00:10:42,760 --> 00:10:47,760 Speaker 1: wasn't um acting right, whatever that means, and UH would 179 00:10:48,640 --> 00:10:50,880 Speaker 1: use this walking stick. He had to give them a 180 00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:55,760 Speaker 1: good whacking if he felt they were behaving inappropriately. Right, 181 00:10:56,040 --> 00:10:59,079 Speaker 1: seems like a really ill tempered kind of not a 182 00:10:59,240 --> 00:11:02,360 Speaker 1: very friendly do. So. Can you imagine maybe you're out 183 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:06,160 Speaker 1: somewhere and you're you're partying, or you've had an argument. 184 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:10,320 Speaker 1: You know, you're somehow at a state of enhanced emotions, right, 185 00:11:10,400 --> 00:11:12,800 Speaker 1: and maybe you're not behaving as normal, and then someone 186 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:16,360 Speaker 1: starts whacking the tar out of you with a cane 187 00:11:16,480 --> 00:11:18,520 Speaker 1: or a stick, and you try to fight back and 188 00:11:18,600 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 1: you realize, oh wait, never mind, that's the king, my 189 00:11:22,040 --> 00:11:29,880 Speaker 1: bad my bad g or my bad f. So he's 190 00:11:29,880 --> 00:11:33,640 Speaker 1: a complex character, right. He is attacking people in the streets. 191 00:11:34,040 --> 00:11:37,000 Speaker 1: He's not killing them for sport, but he is, as 192 00:11:37,040 --> 00:11:39,720 Speaker 1: you said, and only he's whacking them. Uh. He also 193 00:11:39,920 --> 00:11:43,080 Speaker 1: doesn't think the treasury should be a source of personal revenue, 194 00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:46,160 Speaker 1: and that's something a lot of politicians across the world 195 00:11:46,240 --> 00:11:51,040 Speaker 1: could learn from today. And he greatly emphasized the importance 196 00:11:51,080 --> 00:11:54,719 Speaker 1: of the military. Between his accession to the throne in 197 00:11:54,800 --> 00:11:59,400 Speaker 1: seventeen thirteen and his death in seventeen forty. He expanded 198 00:11:59,440 --> 00:12:02,520 Speaker 1: the size of the Prussian army from thirty eight thousand 199 00:12:02,600 --> 00:12:06,439 Speaker 1: men to eighty three thousand men, and eventually, according to 200 00:12:06,800 --> 00:12:10,360 Speaker 1: a couple of different sources, one in every nine men 201 00:12:10,600 --> 00:12:14,559 Speaker 1: in Prussia was a soldier and another forty thousand were 202 00:12:14,679 --> 00:12:19,439 Speaker 1: foreign mercenaries. This is why he became known as the 203 00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:26,439 Speaker 1: soldier King. And he went through these military projects that 204 00:12:26,559 --> 00:12:29,480 Speaker 1: paved the way for his son, who was also spoiler 205 00:12:29,559 --> 00:12:34,000 Speaker 1: alert named Frederick Frederick the Great UH, to turn Prussia 206 00:12:34,160 --> 00:12:38,560 Speaker 1: into a great European power. But the thing he loved 207 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:41,880 Speaker 1: the most out of all of his almost one hundred 208 00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:45,599 Speaker 1: thousand soldiers, out of all of his military trappings, was 209 00:12:45,880 --> 00:12:50,120 Speaker 1: a personal regiment that he designed that we know today 210 00:12:50,360 --> 00:12:55,240 Speaker 1: as the Potsdam Giants, also known as the Potsdama reason 211 00:12:55,360 --> 00:13:00,080 Speaker 1: God Rising, or the long Guys or the giant are 212 00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:03,920 Speaker 1: of pot stump Um. And this was not a coincidence. 213 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:07,520 Speaker 1: This was that these men were were so stately um 214 00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:10,559 Speaker 1: he recruited them uh and dare we say went even 215 00:13:10,640 --> 00:13:14,079 Speaker 1: further than that eventually, um for this very effect. So 216 00:13:14,320 --> 00:13:19,640 Speaker 1: he maintained and had trained this unit of the tallest 217 00:13:19,760 --> 00:13:23,200 Speaker 1: men around. Some rumored that one I think a Swedish 218 00:13:23,240 --> 00:13:25,720 Speaker 1: recruit was even like up to eight ft tall. Yeah. 219 00:13:26,120 --> 00:13:29,559 Speaker 1: The only requirement for joining this regiment was that you 220 00:13:29,640 --> 00:13:33,520 Speaker 1: had to be over six ft tall. That doesn't sound 221 00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:38,280 Speaker 1: especially difficult today, and these are modern ages because people 222 00:13:38,320 --> 00:13:42,120 Speaker 1: are tending to get taller, But back then that was 223 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:45,719 Speaker 1: freakish lye tall, you know what I mean. They were 224 00:13:45,840 --> 00:13:50,640 Speaker 1: given these great uniforms, they were given these weird caps 225 00:13:51,240 --> 00:13:54,360 Speaker 1: that were I think eighteen inches high to make them 226 00:13:54,400 --> 00:13:57,439 Speaker 1: look even taller. And then they were given the best rooms, 227 00:13:57,480 --> 00:13:59,400 Speaker 1: in the best food, and they also got paid. But 228 00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:01,280 Speaker 1: they got paid in a weird way. They didn't get 229 00:14:01,280 --> 00:14:04,760 Speaker 1: paid by seniority, they didn't get paid by experience. No, 230 00:14:05,000 --> 00:14:08,560 Speaker 1: they got paid like literally for their height. And let's 231 00:14:08,600 --> 00:14:11,440 Speaker 1: not forget that these this regiment never really saw a battle. 232 00:14:11,520 --> 00:14:13,560 Speaker 1: It was will get into more about how it became 233 00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:16,760 Speaker 1: this kind of like you know, optical thing, this bargaining chip. 234 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:21,160 Speaker 1: But now their their rate of pay was very specifically 235 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:23,680 Speaker 1: tied to their height. So if you're six one, that 236 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:26,680 Speaker 1: guy next to you that six three is making bank. 237 00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:30,680 Speaker 1: You already know you are, you can tell. So despite 238 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:34,320 Speaker 1: all these privileges, a lot of these giants, so called giants, 239 00:14:34,400 --> 00:14:40,400 Speaker 1: were very unhappy because they were reluctant soldiers and their 240 00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:46,920 Speaker 1: entire lives hinged on the whims of Frederick William. If 241 00:14:47,560 --> 00:14:51,720 Speaker 1: it was like, for comparison, imagine that you are the 242 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:57,640 Speaker 1: favorite entourage member of a a Saudi prince or something, 243 00:14:57,800 --> 00:15:01,000 Speaker 1: someone who's literally beyond the law now, and they say 244 00:15:01,440 --> 00:15:03,800 Speaker 1: they like whatever they think is a cool idea at 245 00:15:03,800 --> 00:15:06,960 Speaker 1: the time, you have to make it happen. And you know, 246 00:15:07,200 --> 00:15:11,640 Speaker 1: let's say, for instance, Casey, he's let's see, he's in 247 00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:14,800 Speaker 1: the entourage of a Saudi prince and they want they 248 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:18,680 Speaker 1: want you to just be on call seven, to show 249 00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:21,440 Speaker 1: up and and just say things in French because they 250 00:15:21,520 --> 00:15:25,360 Speaker 1: think French sounds very pleasing to the ear. You would 251 00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:27,600 Speaker 1: spend the rest of your life never knowing when the 252 00:15:27,640 --> 00:15:30,440 Speaker 1: phone was gonna ring, never really being able to be 253 00:15:30,560 --> 00:15:33,400 Speaker 1: too far away, and never knowing when this guy in 254 00:15:33,560 --> 00:15:37,720 Speaker 1: charge would say, you know, pronto, make with the French. 255 00:15:38,400 --> 00:15:40,960 Speaker 1: That's what they were doing, show up and be tall 256 00:15:41,280 --> 00:15:43,960 Speaker 1: whenever the king wants. And I think it went even 257 00:15:44,080 --> 00:15:47,280 Speaker 1: further than what we're talking about. I mean, he was 258 00:15:47,400 --> 00:15:50,040 Speaker 1: so obsessed with the recruiting the tallest of the tall 259 00:15:50,480 --> 00:15:53,040 Speaker 1: that he like there was word out that Okay, if 260 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:55,480 Speaker 1: you're a teacher in Prussia, you're supposed to keep an 261 00:15:55,480 --> 00:15:58,400 Speaker 1: eye out for particularly tall children. And then just you know, 262 00:15:58,720 --> 00:16:03,200 Speaker 1: give him up to the regiment. Uh. Babies even were 263 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:07,720 Speaker 1: like marked with a red scarf if they were seen 264 00:16:07,840 --> 00:16:10,560 Speaker 1: by the doctor as being in a particularly high height 265 00:16:10,680 --> 00:16:13,360 Speaker 1: and weight percentile or whatever you know. Uh, and that 266 00:16:13,480 --> 00:16:16,600 Speaker 1: was the thing. People sold their children, People sold their children. 267 00:16:16,960 --> 00:16:20,920 Speaker 1: Frederick William made it clear to his political allies that 268 00:16:21,280 --> 00:16:25,760 Speaker 1: they could just bestow upon him the gift of tall 269 00:16:26,640 --> 00:16:30,360 Speaker 1: soldiers for his unit, rather than like, you know, giving 270 00:16:30,440 --> 00:16:34,160 Speaker 1: him gifts or lands or anything like that. Absolutely myopic 271 00:16:34,240 --> 00:16:37,480 Speaker 1: about this whole thing. Um and what hey know, what 272 00:16:37,600 --> 00:16:40,120 Speaker 1: happened if they didn't want to go if these if 273 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:44,000 Speaker 1: these tall people, I don't imagine anything good. No was 274 00:16:44,320 --> 00:16:47,760 Speaker 1: did did he just say? Did Frederick William just say, well, 275 00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:50,520 Speaker 1: you know, I respect your autonomy in your opinion. No, 276 00:16:50,720 --> 00:16:52,720 Speaker 1: kings don't do stuff like that. Do they know? What 277 00:16:52,880 --> 00:16:55,800 Speaker 1: did they do? Um? He yeah? Of course if if 278 00:16:55,840 --> 00:17:00,360 Speaker 1: he couldn't legally acquire these uh, these larger than average humans, 279 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:03,720 Speaker 1: he would just have them kidnapped in the night, Which 280 00:17:03,840 --> 00:17:07,600 Speaker 1: is crazy. What at one time he tried to kidnap 281 00:17:07,680 --> 00:17:11,199 Speaker 1: and Austrian diplomat, which flies in the face of how 282 00:17:11,240 --> 00:17:13,440 Speaker 1: diplomacy is supposed to work. Right. I mean this is 283 00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:17,320 Speaker 1: really going into the territory of like fetishism instead of 284 00:17:17,400 --> 00:17:21,080 Speaker 1: actual kind of like functional tactics, you know, because again 285 00:17:21,560 --> 00:17:23,720 Speaker 1: did never see battle. It was just like for the 286 00:17:23,800 --> 00:17:26,159 Speaker 1: optics of having a bunch of very tall, you know, 287 00:17:26,320 --> 00:17:29,119 Speaker 1: super soldier looking men that were at his back and 288 00:17:29,240 --> 00:17:34,000 Speaker 1: call it's clearly it's it's clearly if not fetishization, it 289 00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:36,800 Speaker 1: is it is an obsession. There's no way around it. 290 00:17:37,560 --> 00:17:42,760 Speaker 1: He even had people lured to his kingdom under false 291 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:46,119 Speaker 1: pretenses sort of the way that you know, that's an 292 00:17:46,200 --> 00:17:49,760 Speaker 1: ongoing tragedy in the world today. There are thousands and 293 00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:53,480 Speaker 1: thousands and thousands of people who are trafficked to different 294 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:56,159 Speaker 1: countries because they're told they're going to be you know, 295 00:17:56,800 --> 00:17:59,480 Speaker 1: domestic workers, or they're going to work in construction. In 296 00:17:59,560 --> 00:18:02,280 Speaker 1: the Baden switch happens, yeah, and that's what Frederick william 297 00:18:02,600 --> 00:18:05,800 Speaker 1: was doing. He had, for instance, a guy named James 298 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:10,560 Speaker 1: Kirkland who was seven ft and one inch tall, which 299 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:14,040 Speaker 1: is huge for this time, it's pretty tall now, and 300 00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:18,879 Speaker 1: he was Irish. He was given a job as a 301 00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:23,359 Speaker 1: footman from one Baron Bork, who was the Prussian ambassador 302 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:27,680 Speaker 1: to London. Good old Baron Bork. It sounds like that's 303 00:18:27,720 --> 00:18:31,120 Speaker 1: the brand name of some kind of canned meat problem products. 304 00:18:32,080 --> 00:18:37,600 Speaker 1: Barren Borts, Boston baked beans, bean bars, bean bars. Its 305 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:40,800 Speaker 1: interested Yeah, yeah yeah, And that job was of course 306 00:18:41,000 --> 00:18:44,280 Speaker 1: a trap. Yeah. He was sent to the ship that 307 00:18:44,520 --> 00:18:47,879 Speaker 1: was moored in Portsmouth and then he was grabbed, tied 308 00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:52,440 Speaker 1: up and gagged and pretty much press ganged into the 309 00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:56,280 Speaker 1: tall blokes. Absolutely insane, the long guys. But they were 310 00:18:56,440 --> 00:18:59,000 Speaker 1: given some special treatment. You know, they got to eat 311 00:18:59,080 --> 00:19:02,160 Speaker 1: really well. Uh you know, in terms of like their 312 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:05,480 Speaker 1: position within the military. They were treated um with the 313 00:19:05,600 --> 00:19:09,919 Speaker 1: utmost care because they were you know, Williams special special Boys, 314 00:19:10,320 --> 00:19:14,680 Speaker 1: Special long boys, bringing my long boys. But god, he 315 00:19:14,760 --> 00:19:18,800 Speaker 1: seems like a real megalomaniacal. It seems yeah, not good. 316 00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:21,760 Speaker 1: It's it's like something the musician Prince would do, it 317 00:19:21,880 --> 00:19:24,480 Speaker 1: does It does seem like that, only I don't know Prince. 318 00:19:24,720 --> 00:19:26,840 Speaker 1: Probably Prince would ever take it this far. He might 319 00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:29,400 Speaker 1: just have like, you know, really tall lamas or something. 320 00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:32,200 Speaker 1: You might have like one long Lama exactly the long Llama. 321 00:19:32,440 --> 00:19:36,520 Speaker 1: But yeah, a lot of these potsdam giants, uh, deserted, 322 00:19:37,440 --> 00:19:41,720 Speaker 1: ran away or tried to kill themselves. Yeah, it seems 323 00:19:41,720 --> 00:19:44,200 Speaker 1: like a joke, known because so much time has passed, 324 00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:48,480 Speaker 1: But this is a really tough life. They were more 325 00:19:48,760 --> 00:19:53,880 Speaker 1: or less these oddities. This this personal circus for the king. 326 00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:58,280 Speaker 1: This is a true story, folks. If the king was sad, 327 00:19:58,880 --> 00:20:00,680 Speaker 1: he would and he's done us more than once, he 328 00:20:00,720 --> 00:20:03,840 Speaker 1: would assemble two hundred to three hundred of his giants 329 00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:07,200 Speaker 1: and have the march around for him. They were perceived 330 00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:11,760 Speaker 1: by tall people with turbans, playing symbols and trumpets and 331 00:20:12,000 --> 00:20:15,840 Speaker 1: an enormous bear that was the mascot of the giants 332 00:20:16,280 --> 00:20:22,760 Speaker 1: and France from Boys. Exactly because I have Frederick Willi, 333 00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:25,600 Speaker 1: you know, like I'm sorry, I just the guy really 334 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:28,119 Speaker 1: sounds like a monster. And this happened a lot when 335 00:20:28,160 --> 00:20:31,040 Speaker 1: he was ill. If the doctor I can see the 336 00:20:31,119 --> 00:20:36,880 Speaker 1: scene right when he was feeling poorly, this mini parade 337 00:20:36,960 --> 00:20:39,920 Speaker 1: would march through his bedroom and he would also paint 338 00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:43,119 Speaker 1: pictures of his favorite giants from memory. So it's exactly 339 00:20:43,200 --> 00:20:45,720 Speaker 1: like you're describing all the picture. The doctors saying, you know, 340 00:20:46,800 --> 00:20:50,760 Speaker 1: your highness, you must have meloncolic cumas or something, and 341 00:20:50,840 --> 00:20:55,720 Speaker 1: he's saying, oh, silence the bear, here's the bear. Watch 342 00:20:55,840 --> 00:21:03,360 Speaker 1: the bath. So this is this also goes into eugenics. 343 00:21:03,720 --> 00:21:05,240 Speaker 1: I was about to say, when are we gonna get it? 344 00:21:05,240 --> 00:21:08,119 Speaker 1: When we're gonna start dropping the E word? This is 345 00:21:08,200 --> 00:21:10,920 Speaker 1: the turn, casey, can we get a things take a 346 00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:16,800 Speaker 1: dark turn? Sound? Yeah? Things that were already pretty dark 347 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:23,240 Speaker 1: taking even darker turn. Yeah. So Frederick William had the 348 00:21:23,359 --> 00:21:29,359 Speaker 1: means and the motive to create more tall people, so 349 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:33,160 Speaker 1: he began to experiment with what we today call eugenics. 350 00:21:34,119 --> 00:21:39,360 Speaker 1: He paired the tallest of his soldiers with the tallest 351 00:21:39,440 --> 00:21:44,119 Speaker 1: women he could find and ordered them to breed. This 352 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:48,280 Speaker 1: was somewhat effective. As a result, the town was littered 353 00:21:48,359 --> 00:21:51,920 Speaker 1: with unusually tall men by the end of the eighteenth century. 354 00:21:52,760 --> 00:21:55,679 Speaker 1: And that's not all he did. He also tortured these 355 00:21:55,720 --> 00:21:58,040 Speaker 1: people to make them taller. Well, I mean to make 356 00:21:58,160 --> 00:22:01,200 Speaker 1: them taller. I roll city, right, I mean, you're either 357 00:22:01,280 --> 00:22:03,359 Speaker 1: tall or you ain't. If you're getting stretched on the 358 00:22:03,480 --> 00:22:06,640 Speaker 1: rack is just gonna mess up your bones and make 359 00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:10,120 Speaker 1: you render you ineffective as a soldier in Dialet. Yeah, 360 00:22:10,119 --> 00:22:13,159 Speaker 1: he would stretch these men on the rack in the 361 00:22:13,240 --> 00:22:15,840 Speaker 1: hopes of making them taller. It's just another, like, you know, 362 00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:19,280 Speaker 1: example of how people didn't understand how science worked back 363 00:22:19,320 --> 00:22:23,640 Speaker 1: in the day. Um and yeah, they of course people 364 00:22:23,680 --> 00:22:27,280 Speaker 1: were deserting and attempting suicide. You're not tall enough, you know, 365 00:22:27,480 --> 00:22:29,480 Speaker 1: or like maybe if I'm only a little taller, he'll 366 00:22:29,560 --> 00:22:31,800 Speaker 1: like me better and I'll get a little more money. Sure, 367 00:22:31,880 --> 00:22:36,560 Speaker 1: I'll submit myself to the rack, yeah or whatever exactly. Um. 368 00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:40,040 Speaker 1: And if anyone attempted to get out of any of 369 00:22:40,119 --> 00:22:42,359 Speaker 1: this stuff, Um, we talked about how he would, you know, 370 00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:46,200 Speaker 1: stoop so low as to stage kidnappings. If anyone who 371 00:22:46,280 --> 00:22:49,040 Speaker 1: was in his company and in his regiment, refused any 372 00:22:49,080 --> 00:22:53,280 Speaker 1: of this stuff, including the rack, they would be killed. Yeah. 373 00:22:53,440 --> 00:23:01,560 Speaker 1: The punishment was death. There was no in between. Probably 374 00:23:01,640 --> 00:23:04,040 Speaker 1: one of the only upsides of being a soldier in 375 00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:07,320 Speaker 1: this regiment was that you would never actually be in 376 00:23:07,440 --> 00:23:10,560 Speaker 1: battle because the king thought you were far too valuable 377 00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:18,640 Speaker 1: to waste. I can't send my tall boys out, I know. Yeah, yeah, 378 00:23:18,760 --> 00:23:24,600 Speaker 1: real pill. So we don't know even today whether they 379 00:23:24,800 --> 00:23:28,320 Speaker 1: had any military value. If you think about it at 380 00:23:28,359 --> 00:23:31,400 Speaker 1: the time, being that tall might have been a disadvantage 381 00:23:31,440 --> 00:23:33,840 Speaker 1: on the battlefield. You're more of a target to hit, right. 382 00:23:34,640 --> 00:23:39,680 Speaker 1: And Frederick also barely fought any wars during his lifetime 383 00:23:40,600 --> 00:23:44,440 Speaker 1: in comparison to other monarchs. By the time he died 384 00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:48,760 Speaker 1: in seventy he was fifty one, he had had a 385 00:23:48,960 --> 00:23:54,280 Speaker 1: total of two thousand, five hundred tall blokes and his son, 386 00:23:55,160 --> 00:23:57,720 Speaker 1: when we mentioned earlier, the one we called Frederick the Great, 387 00:23:58,280 --> 00:24:00,760 Speaker 1: he thought these guys were useless. He probably felt a 388 00:24:00,840 --> 00:24:03,359 Speaker 1: little bad for him to Frederick the Great got the 389 00:24:03,440 --> 00:24:05,480 Speaker 1: name of Frederick the Great because he ended up being 390 00:24:05,680 --> 00:24:09,680 Speaker 1: a much greater military leader than his father. Yeah, good point. 391 00:24:09,720 --> 00:24:12,200 Speaker 1: It's not ironic, and it's not like little job Or. 392 00:24:12,480 --> 00:24:16,720 Speaker 1: And he he basically like conquered a large swath of 393 00:24:17,160 --> 00:24:21,800 Speaker 1: of the area of the region. Yeah, exactly. And because 394 00:24:21,880 --> 00:24:27,160 Speaker 1: he saw this this tall blokes thing as relatively useless, 395 00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:31,159 Speaker 1: he decided that these men were actually soldiers and he 396 00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:34,760 Speaker 1: would use them as actual soldiers. So he sent most 397 00:24:34,840 --> 00:24:37,960 Speaker 1: of them to active combat units. And the Pots and 398 00:24:38,040 --> 00:24:43,879 Speaker 1: Giants regiment itself wouldn't be fully dissolved until eighteen o six, 399 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:49,399 Speaker 1: but by this point the story was notorious throughout Europe. 400 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:53,240 Speaker 1: Everybody knew about this. They also knew about the breeding program. 401 00:24:54,400 --> 00:24:57,880 Speaker 1: And this leads us to, you know, an even darker turn. 402 00:24:58,000 --> 00:25:02,439 Speaker 1: We see the consequences of what was as an eccentric obsession, 403 00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:07,840 Speaker 1: possibly a fetish the Nazi government in Germany. The Nazi 404 00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:13,399 Speaker 1: regime had its root their their attempts to create so 405 00:25:13,600 --> 00:25:17,360 Speaker 1: called aryan master race had their roots in this Prussian 406 00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:22,240 Speaker 1: militarism along with, you know, their own take on Darwinism. 407 00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:25,800 Speaker 1: Even though that was clearly Frederick William the First that 408 00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:29,160 Speaker 1: was more responsible for that image. Frederick the Great becoming 409 00:25:29,200 --> 00:25:31,960 Speaker 1: a much more successful military leader kind of got stuck 410 00:25:32,000 --> 00:25:34,399 Speaker 1: with some of that too. Not saying he was, you know, 411 00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:37,200 Speaker 1: a perfect man or anything, um, but he has a 412 00:25:37,240 --> 00:25:41,200 Speaker 1: really interesting backstory because his father, remember the walking stick, 413 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:44,359 Speaker 1: uh he you know, it was a notorious crank who 414 00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:46,720 Speaker 1: would like beat up his son with this walking stick, 415 00:25:46,880 --> 00:25:48,520 Speaker 1: And when he found out that his son had a 416 00:25:48,680 --> 00:25:51,960 Speaker 1: male lover, he had them both thrown in jail and 417 00:25:52,080 --> 00:25:55,480 Speaker 1: had the lover executed in front of his son, Frederick 418 00:25:55,800 --> 00:25:58,480 Speaker 1: Frederick the Great. So once his father died, I mean, 419 00:25:58,560 --> 00:26:01,600 Speaker 1: he definitely had an acts to grind, and it seems 420 00:26:01,600 --> 00:26:03,240 Speaker 1: like he had like a fire in his belly that 421 00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:05,200 Speaker 1: kind of made him want to really like prove himself. 422 00:26:05,280 --> 00:26:07,440 Speaker 1: And I'm just speculating here a little bit, but he 423 00:26:07,520 --> 00:26:10,680 Speaker 1: definitely proved to be more effective than his father in 424 00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:15,720 Speaker 1: terms of conquering right, so he ruled Frederick the Great. 425 00:26:16,160 --> 00:26:19,560 Speaker 1: Frederick too ruled the Kingdom of Prussia from seventeen forty 426 00:26:19,600 --> 00:26:22,720 Speaker 1: when his father passed away, until seventeen eighty six, so 427 00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:26,199 Speaker 1: that's a reign of forty six years. That makes him 428 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:30,119 Speaker 1: the longest reigning of any hohen z O king. He 429 00:26:30,520 --> 00:26:33,600 Speaker 1: reorganized the Prussian armies, He was a patron of the 430 00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:37,040 Speaker 1: arts and the enlightenment. He really earned his name with 431 00:26:37,320 --> 00:26:40,960 Speaker 1: his success in the Seven Years War. He was the 432 00:26:41,040 --> 00:26:44,600 Speaker 1: last monarch titled king in Prussia and he declared himself 433 00:26:44,760 --> 00:26:49,399 Speaker 1: King of Prussia Boom. So he's the reason the name changed. 434 00:26:50,080 --> 00:26:55,080 Speaker 1: His leading military power, and he was nicknamed deir Alti 435 00:26:55,200 --> 00:26:58,440 Speaker 1: Fritz or the Old Fritz by the Prussian people and 436 00:26:58,480 --> 00:27:01,439 Speaker 1: eventually the rest of Germany. So he did a lot 437 00:27:01,520 --> 00:27:04,440 Speaker 1: of stuff his forefathers were unable to do in terms 438 00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:10,240 Speaker 1: of political and military organization, for sure. So despite his successes, 439 00:27:10,640 --> 00:27:13,600 Speaker 1: and he was definitely an imperfect person as well, Frederick 440 00:27:13,600 --> 00:27:18,560 Speaker 1: the Great was unfairly associated with the Potsdam giants. It's 441 00:27:18,840 --> 00:27:22,320 Speaker 1: you know, they mixed up their Frederick's right. Charles Darwin 442 00:27:23,040 --> 00:27:25,720 Speaker 1: even refers to the Potsdam Giants. By the way, he says, 443 00:27:26,800 --> 00:27:30,280 Speaker 1: unlike livestock, human beings have never been forcibly bred for 444 00:27:30,440 --> 00:27:34,359 Speaker 1: select characteristics. Quote except in the well known case of 445 00:27:34,440 --> 00:27:40,080 Speaker 1: the Prussian grenadiers the Potstum giants. Oh where where are 446 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:43,720 Speaker 1: we at? Now? What? What is the legacy of these 447 00:27:43,840 --> 00:27:48,320 Speaker 1: Potsdam giants? Or maybe you're listening to this and you're 448 00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:51,680 Speaker 1: not completely on the same page as us. Maybe you think, 449 00:27:51,760 --> 00:27:54,399 Speaker 1: I don't know, guys, this sounds pretty cool. I'd like 450 00:27:54,560 --> 00:27:58,080 Speaker 1: to see that that march. I love bears and symbols 451 00:27:58,119 --> 00:28:01,240 Speaker 1: and trumpets. Fun. Well, Lucky for you, if you go 452 00:28:01,480 --> 00:28:05,520 Speaker 1: to Langa dash Carrass dot d e, you can hire 453 00:28:05,640 --> 00:28:09,520 Speaker 1: Potsdam giant reenactors to march around your very bedroom. Not 454 00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:12,720 Speaker 1: sure if that includes a bear, but this is an 455 00:28:12,760 --> 00:28:16,920 Speaker 1: association UH in Potsdam, Germany that tries to kind of 456 00:28:17,040 --> 00:28:19,840 Speaker 1: carry on the legacy of the tall boys Um and 457 00:28:19,960 --> 00:28:22,920 Speaker 1: you can get them to perform this authentic military drill 458 00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:25,760 Speaker 1: at your family picnic. I don't think they have a 459 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:28,720 Speaker 1: bear though, that's one note. One difference. Would this have 460 00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:31,680 Speaker 1: been a dancing bear, like like I'm picturing it balancing 461 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:33,600 Speaker 1: on a ball circus style, or would it have been 462 00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:36,520 Speaker 1: like a big lumbering scary bear it was. It was 463 00:28:36,640 --> 00:28:42,120 Speaker 1: probably trained to do some things without going too far 464 00:28:42,320 --> 00:28:45,240 Speaker 1: down the rabbit hole. I would not be surprised if 465 00:28:45,560 --> 00:28:48,480 Speaker 1: Frederick William maybe had the bear trained to do like 466 00:28:48,840 --> 00:28:52,720 Speaker 1: rough reenactments of military drills, you know, give it a 467 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:58,440 Speaker 1: stick at plays with or something. So this concludes our story. 468 00:28:58,760 --> 00:29:03,720 Speaker 1: Casey have to ask, was this was this worth learning organically? 469 00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:05,680 Speaker 1: We didn't string you along. Do you feel like you 470 00:29:05,800 --> 00:29:09,080 Speaker 1: got your time's worth? I absolutely got way more than 471 00:29:09,160 --> 00:29:11,960 Speaker 1: I bargained for. So yeah, good job. So say we 472 00:29:12,040 --> 00:29:17,440 Speaker 1: all on the case, Acy on the case, and thank 473 00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:20,640 Speaker 1: you so much for tuning in. We want to hear remember, 474 00:29:20,720 --> 00:29:23,840 Speaker 1: we want to hear the weird town names in your 475 00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:27,080 Speaker 1: neck of the Global Woods. And uh, where do we 476 00:29:27,120 --> 00:29:28,959 Speaker 1: go with this? I will tell you one thing. When 477 00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:31,920 Speaker 1: I was originally starting to research this, I just googled, uh, 478 00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:35,280 Speaker 1: super soldiers or Frederick super soldier, something like that, and 479 00:29:35,360 --> 00:29:38,760 Speaker 1: a bunch of YouTube videos came on about this notion 480 00:29:38,960 --> 00:29:43,680 Speaker 1: of are there super soldier nephelem like angels in the 481 00:29:43,800 --> 00:29:48,120 Speaker 1: United States military? Oh yeah, yeah, I've I'm familiar with 482 00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:51,760 Speaker 1: that idea as well. It's a little bit out there. 483 00:29:51,840 --> 00:29:53,640 Speaker 1: Oh it was way out there. But you know what, 484 00:29:53,840 --> 00:29:56,080 Speaker 1: let us know if you were listening to this episode 485 00:29:56,120 --> 00:29:59,280 Speaker 1: and you are a Nephelim super soldier, either in the 486 00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:02,240 Speaker 1: U S we're abroad, we would love to hear your story. 487 00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:04,440 Speaker 1: Tell us about the great battle for good and evil. 488 00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:06,840 Speaker 1: You can write to us at Ridiculous at my heart 489 00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:09,120 Speaker 1: radio dot com. You can hit us up on our 490 00:30:09,160 --> 00:30:11,480 Speaker 1: Facebook group that is the Ridiculous Historians. All you have 491 00:30:11,520 --> 00:30:13,000 Speaker 1: to do is come up with either my name or 492 00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:15,480 Speaker 1: Ben's name. I really don't understand when people bother writing. 493 00:30:15,560 --> 00:30:18,040 Speaker 1: I don't know when they put their responses. I mean, 494 00:30:18,080 --> 00:30:19,760 Speaker 1: look it up. You really want to be a member 495 00:30:19,800 --> 00:30:22,760 Speaker 1: of the group, you could clearly look up minor Ben's name. 496 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:25,200 Speaker 1: They did. Just flabber against me a little bit, or 497 00:30:25,400 --> 00:30:28,120 Speaker 1: you know, do a clever diversion that like as a 498 00:30:28,160 --> 00:30:30,120 Speaker 1: reference to the show, or just make us laughing. Yeah, 499 00:30:30,320 --> 00:30:32,960 Speaker 1: just just make me laugh. Not an exclusive group. Also, 500 00:30:33,080 --> 00:30:35,840 Speaker 1: you know what, I love when people are sending out 501 00:30:35,920 --> 00:30:40,120 Speaker 1: T shirt ideas. I'm gonna say I'm interested in seeing 502 00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:45,280 Speaker 1: a design for Baron Bork's Boston Baked Being. I also 503 00:30:45,440 --> 00:30:47,960 Speaker 1: really want to do some straight seahorse teeth shirts because 504 00:30:47,960 --> 00:30:51,400 Speaker 1: I am surprised and amazed and honestly touched that that 505 00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:54,240 Speaker 1: phrase is taken off the way told you I mentioned 506 00:30:54,360 --> 00:30:56,400 Speaker 1: I told you on air. Sometimes you just know when 507 00:30:56,440 --> 00:30:58,720 Speaker 1: the idea is happening. It's true. If you want to 508 00:30:58,800 --> 00:31:01,800 Speaker 1: check me and Ben out in our personal private time lives, 509 00:31:02,040 --> 00:31:04,880 Speaker 1: you can hit me up on Instagram at how Now 510 00:31:05,120 --> 00:31:08,640 Speaker 1: Noel Brown. You can see me get kicked into and 511 00:31:08,720 --> 00:31:12,320 Speaker 1: out to various airports around the world. At Ben Bullen. 512 00:31:12,720 --> 00:31:15,200 Speaker 1: You can also always, as you said, right to us 513 00:31:15,280 --> 00:31:18,560 Speaker 1: with some T shirt ideas. And hey, let us know 514 00:31:18,720 --> 00:31:22,440 Speaker 1: if you would join the Potsdam Giants if you know 515 00:31:22,560 --> 00:31:25,120 Speaker 1: it sounds like it's not a bad gig for someone 516 00:31:25,200 --> 00:31:29,040 Speaker 1: who consented to be in it. Sure let us know. 517 00:31:29,400 --> 00:31:32,800 Speaker 1: Thank you so much to Christopher Hasiotis, friend of the show, 518 00:31:32,840 --> 00:31:37,360 Speaker 1: of course, thank you to Casey le buschegram for returning 519 00:31:37,440 --> 00:31:41,000 Speaker 1: from abroad. Thanks to our research associate Gay Lucier, Thanks 520 00:31:41,040 --> 00:31:43,520 Speaker 1: to Alex Williams who composed our theme, and as always, 521 00:31:43,560 --> 00:31:46,160 Speaker 1: thanks to you Ben for being such a dapper pal 522 00:31:46,440 --> 00:31:48,560 Speaker 1: and uh and co host on on this here show. 523 00:31:48,880 --> 00:31:51,400 Speaker 1: Likewise Noel LifeWise, Hey, Casey, can we get like a 524 00:31:51,480 --> 00:32:00,400 Speaker 1: little military music to play us out? Everyone tend to 525 00:32:00,440 --> 00:32:09,120 Speaker 1: be seven feet tall, Feel so Good? See Fox. For 526 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:11,360 Speaker 1: more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I heart 527 00:32:11,440 --> 00:32:14,280 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 528 00:32:14,320 --> 00:32:15,040 Speaker 1: favorite shows.