Curtains and Courage: Frederick the Great’s Secret Theatre of Rebellion

Before he commanded armies or penned philosophical treatises, young Frederick the Great built a stage—and used it to defy his father.

Trapped under the iron rule of Frederick William I, who valued discipline over dialogue and muskets over metaphors, Frederick found refuge in creativity. In secret, within the confines of palace rooms, he and a few trusted companions constructed a miniature theatre. They rehearsed plays—some borrowed from the likes of Molière and Racine, others written by Frederick himself. The language of choice? French, naturally—another act of rebellion in a court that viewed anything French as dangerously refined.

An artist's impression of a young Frederick the Great acting on stage to his friends

These plays weren’t just entertainment. They were commentary. Veiled satire aimed at court life, authority, and the absurdity of forced obedience. For a boy forbidden to express himself, the stage became the one place he could speak freely—even if only in character.

Eventually, the king found out. The theatre was shut down. The scripts vanished. The message: stop dreaming, start drilling.

But the damage—or the inspiration—was done.

Frederick carried this early defiance into adulthood. As king, he hosted salons, wrote essays, and surrounded himself with artists and philosophers. Sanssouci became his real theatre, where art and intellect flourished in direct contrast to the rigid court he grew up in.

What his father saw as weakness, Frederick turned into legacy.

Behind every iron crown is often a curtain quietly rising. Follow for more surprising scenes from history’s great lives