Hans Hermann von Katte

Hans Hermann von Katte (28 February 1704 – 6 November 1730) was a Lieutenant of the Prussian Army and close friend of the future Frederick II of Prussia, then the Crown Prince. He was executed by Frederick's father King Frederick William I of Prussia when Frederick plotted to escape from the Kingdom of Prussia to the Kingdom of Great Britain. Some believe that Frederick intended to defect to the service of George II of Great Britain (Frederick's maternal uncle) and possibly return to Prussia to depose Frederick William.

Life
Born in the Prussian capital of Berlin, Katte was a nobleman by birth, coming from a long line of aristocratic military men. His ancestors were squires of Wust in the Altmark. His father, Hans Heinrich Graf von Katte, was one of Frederick William's most regarded cuirassiers. Katte's mother, Dorothee Sophia von Wartensleben, was the daughter of a seasoned and revered field marshal, Graf Leopold Alexander von Wartensleben. Hans Hermann studied in Königsberg and Utrecht — his foci were French and law. After completing his studies, he joined the Prussian Army.

It is not known when Frederick and Katte met for the first time. However, when they both attended private mathematics and mechanics lessons in 1729, they became acquainted rapidly. Frederick, eight years younger than Katte, admired Katte for his cosmopolitan attitude. Both were interested in poetry and playing the flute. In the spring of 1730 Frederick revealed to Katte his plan to flee to France and to leave his harsh and despotic father, King Frederick William I. Katte tried to hold Frederick back, but at the end supported Frederick's plan to escape.

On 5 August 1730, while the royal retinue was near Mannheim in the Electorate of the Palatinate, Frederick tried to escape from his quarters. At that point Katte stayed in Potsdam. A compromising letter unmasked Katte as an accomplice and Frederick and Katte were subsequently arrested and imprisoned in Küstrin. Because they were army officers who had tried to flee Prussia for France, Frederick William I leveled an accusation of treason against the pair.

A court martial found Katte guilty of desertion and sentenced him to lifelong imprisonment; but King Frederick Wilhelm I wanted him executed, declaring that "it would be better that Katte came to death than the justice out of the world." Katte was beheaded at the fortress of Küstrin. The king forced Frederick to watch the execution.

Katte wrote a farewell letter to his father:

On witnessing his death, Frederick was plunged into deep despair for three days. After that, he almost never spoke of Katte again. Katte's remains rest in the crypt of the church in Wust.