Berlin, Broken Mirror of France
Let's explore a central irony of Franco-German history through two key episodes centered in Berlin. The first act describes how Louis XIV's revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685 caused an exodus of Huguenot talent. Welcomed with open arms by a devastated Prussia, these French artisans, entrepreneurs, and soldiers provided the human and technical capital necessary for its rise. The second act analyzes how Frederick the Great, in the 18th century, imported the spirit of the French Enlightenment, notably through his relationship with Voltaire. He used this philosophy not to liberate his people, but to rationalize his administration and perfect his army.
Thus, through the exile of its blood and the export of its spirit, France paradoxically provided its future Prussian rival with the tools of its own power—a history lesson etched in the stones of Berlin.