f the peasants. The Thirty Years' War afforded them frequent
opportunities of replacing the village _Schulzen_, or magistrates, with
officials of their own; and the fact that their share of taxation was
wholly wrung from the peasants made the burden of the latter much
heavier than that of the townsmen.

Frederick III.

The new elector, Frederick III., followed in general the policy of his
father. Having persuaded his step-brothers to surrender the
principalities bequeathed to them by the great elector, he assisted
William of Orange to make his descent on England; then in 1688 allied
himself with other German princes against Louis XIV., and afterwards
fought for the Empire against both France and Turkey. Before he became
elector Frederick had promised the emperor that he would restore
Schwiebus, and he was now called upon to fulfil this engagement, which
after some murmuring he did in 1695. This fact, however, together with
some slights put upon him at the peace of 1697, led him to look with
less favour upon imperial interests. Frederick's chief adviser about
this time was Eberhard Danckelmann (1643-1722), whose services in
continuing the reforming work of the great elector were very valuable;
but having made many enemies, the electress Sophia among them, he fell
from power in 1697, and was imprisoned for several years. The most
important work of the elector was to crown the labours of his father by
securing the kingly title for himself and his descendants. Broached in
1692 this matter was brought up again in 1698 when the emperor and his
ministers, faced with the prospect of a fight over the Spanish
succession, were anxious to conciliate Brandenburg. It was at length
decided that the title should be taken from Prussia rather than from
Brandenburg as the former country lay outside the Empire, and in return
Frederick promised to assist Leopold with 8000 men. The coronation
ceremony took place at Konigsberg on the 18th of January 1701. The
territorial additions to Brandenburg during this reign were few and
unimportant, but the comparative wealth and prosperity enabled the
elector to do a good deal for education, and to spend some money on
buildings. In 1694 the university of Halle was founded; academies for
arts and sciences were established, and Berlin was greatly improved. The
subsequent history of Brandenburg is merged in that of Prussia (q.v.).

BIBLIOGRAPHY.--H. Brosien, _Geschichte der Mark Brandenburg in