William I, or in German
Wilhelm I (full name:
William Frederick Louis, , 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888), of the
House of Hohenzollern was the
King of Prussia (2 January 1861 – 9 March 1888) and the first
German Emperor (18 January 1871 – 9 March 1888), as well as the first
Head of State of a united Germany. Under the leadership of William and his Minister President
Otto von Bismarck,
Prussia achieved the
unification of Germany and the establishment of the
German Empire. Despite his long support of
Otto von Bismarck as Minister President, however, William held strong reservations about some of Bismarck's more
reactionary policies, including his
anti-Catholicism and tough handling of subordinates. Contrary to the aggressive, domineering Bismarck, William was described as polite, gentlemanly, and while a staunch
conservative, more open to certain
classical liberal ideas than his grandson
Wilhelm II.