22 THE SILESIAN WARS, 1740-511 September 1740, it was not just to meet Voltaire for the first time,
but to supervise the progress of Major-General von Borcke and his
armed 'execution corps'. Borcke seized the Meuse town of Maseyck
on 14 September, and the Prussians released the barony to the bishop
only after he made over 180,000 thaler in compensation, on top of the
20,000 which the Prussians had already exacted from Herstal as
contributions. This was a hard bargain, since Herstal yielded rev-
enues of only 2,000 thaler per annum, and so Frederick received a
handsome return for his small investment of force. 'It is impossible to
exaggerate the influence which this small episode had on the violent
measures which ensued, and how it encouraged the presumption of
the king of Prussia' (Valori, 1820, I, 93-4).
Much more was put at stake in October, when Frederick was
suddenly presented with the opportunity of pushing through a vast
south-eastwards extension of the Prussian territories. The Emperor
Charles VI of Austria died on the 20th of that month. Immediately on
hearing of the news Frederick bought in stocks of grain for his army,
and he summoned Podewils and Field-Marshal Schwerin to an urgent
meeting at Rheinsberg. It was evident on 28 October, the first day of
the talks, that Frederick had already made up his mind to seize the-
Austrian province of Silesia. The debates at Rheinsberg merely con-
cerned the practical details of the forthcoming military operation,
and the justifications that were to be made to the world.
Podewils entered a strong protest against the scheme, but on 6
November Frederick told him why he was determined to press ahead.
First of all Silesia was 'the part of the Imperial inheritance to which
we have the strongest right'. Next the king drew Podewils's attention
to the preparedness of the Prussian army, 'which gives us a vast
superiority over all the other powers of Europe, in an unexpected
eventuality like this'. Lastly the state of international affairs argued
for immediate action, to anticipate Frederick's fellow-robbers
(though he did not use that term) (PC 140).
How well founded and how complete were these arguments? The
statement concerning Prussian rights never carried much weight,
since the Hohenzollern claims had extended at most to only about
one-fifth of Silesia, and were in any case much less firmly based than
those to Berg or Herstal. The advantage of this acquisition was,
however, very evident. Directly, the duchy of Silesia offered
Frederick the prize of a territory of 14,000 square miles immediately
adjacent to the Brandenburg heartland, with busy centres of trade, a
well-established linen industry, and a population of 1,500,000, many
of them Protestant Germans. Indirectly, the enterprise would lend
weight and authority to the Prussian state.