Description
4×2 inch matchbox, possibly handmade.The photo on the lid is of Friedrich Wilhelm, Prinz von Preussen, taken around 1869/70. The grandson of Kaiser Wilhelm I., and son of Kronprinz Friedrich, and is the later Kaiser Wilhelm II. In this photo he is aged around 10/11 years old. Prinz Wilhelm (or Friedrich Wilhelm) was born on 27.I.1859 in Potsdam, Neues Palais. At the age of 10 years, a Prince of Prussia was officially “volljährig” (or come of age), and was made a Leutnant (at that time: Seconde-Lieutenant) in the 1st Foot Guards (Erstes Garde-Regiment zu Fuss) in Potsdam, and automaticly received the Black Eagle Order ( Schwarzer Adler-Orden) and the Haus-Orden von Hohenzollern, which can be seen in the photograph. All Princes of Prussia went through this tradition. This photo is a well known photo and could be bought as a postcard or cabinet photo at the time
