Frederick III (German:
Friedrich III., Deutscher Kaiser und König von Preußen; 18 October 1831 – 15 June 1888) was
German Emperor and King of
Prussia for 99 days in 1888, the
Year of the Three Emperors.
Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl, known informally as Fritz, was the only son of
Emperor Wilhelm I and was raised in his family's tradition of military service. Although celebrated as a young man for his leadership and successes during the
Second Schleswig,
Austro-Prussian and
Franco-Prussian wars, he nevertheless professed a hatred of warfare and was praised by friends and enemies alike for his humane conduct. Following the
unification of Germany in 1871 his father, then King of Prussia, became the German Emperor. On Wilhelm's death at the age of 90 on 9 March 1888, the throne passed to Frederick, who had by then been Crown Prince for 17 years. Frederick was suffering from
cancer of the larynx when he died on 15 June 1888, aged 56, following unsuccessful medical treatments for his condition.