The Potsdam Giants: Prussia's Regiment of Kidnapped Tall Men

In 18th-century Prussia, King Friedrich Wilhelm I built an entire military regiment based on a single qualification: height. The Potsdam Giants were Europe's most bizarre military unit—a collection of extraordinarily tall men kidnapped from across the continent to serve as the Soldier King's personal obsession. When persuasion failed, Wilhelm's agents resorted to hostage-taking and bribes. One Bavarian carpenter was literally nailed inside a coffin-sized box and shipped to Prussia—he didn't survive the journey.

The king didn't care that giants make terrible soldiers. Slow, uncoordinated, and massive targets in combat, these seven-foot men existed purely as eye candy for a ruler who stood just five-foot-three. Wilhelm made them parade in 18-inch hats, used them as a human canopy over his head, and even woke them in the middle of the night for private viewings from his bed. When Russia's Peter the Great offered giants in trade, Wilhelm exchanged them for the priceless Amber Room. He even launched breeding experiments, pairing his giants with tall women in an early genetics program that caught Charles Darwin's attention.

This is the forgotten story of Europe's most useless regiment and the captive men who couldn't escape because they were too tall to hide.

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Show Notes: In This Episode:

• Prussia's five-foot-three Soldier King obsessed over soldiers based solely on their height
• How kidnapping became official royal policy when tall men refused to join his army
• The Bavarian carpenter murdered by being nailed inside a shipping crate
• Peter the Great traded giants for the famous Amber Room from Berlin's palace
• Darwin's fascination with Prussia's early experiment in human breeding programs
• Why seven-foot soldiers are actually terrible fighters in modern warfare
• The tragic fate of men held captive simply for being unusually tall

Key Figures:

• Friedrich Wilhelm I - Prussia's "Soldier King" who stood 5'3" and worshipped height
• Peter the Great - Russian czar who traded giants as diplomatic gifts
• Frederick the Great - Wilhelm's son who finally disbanded the useless regiment
• Charles Darwin - Noted the Potsdam breeding experiment in "The Descent of Man"

Tags: Potsdam Giants, Prussia history, Friedrich Wilhelm I, 18th century Europe, military history, kidnapping history, forgotten history, European history, true story, historical obsession, Prussian military, Soldier King, Frederick the Great, Peter the Great, Amber Room, Charles Darwin, bizarre history

Category: History

Chapter Markers: 0:00 - Introduction: The Soldier King's Strange Confession 1:30 - Why Giants Make Terrible Soldiers 2:45 - The Kidnapping Campaign Across Europe 4:15 - Death in a Wooden Box: The Bavarian Carpenter 5:30 - The Amber Room Trade and Breeding Experiments 6:45 - Conclusion: The Giants Finally Go Free

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