Illustrated Treatise on the Maritime Kingdoms, Volume 57: Northern Ocean, Kingdom of Prussia

The beauty of the mountains and rivers is such that distant travelers constantly visit to sightsee and admire. The entire region lies along the banks of the Rhine River original: 來尼河 (Laini he). Its capital city is called Cologne original: 谷鄰城 (Gulin cheng); the text here uses a different transliteration than the previous page's "Kelun", which has a population of 12,000. Aachen original: 亞金 (Yajin) has a population of 32,000; its people are skilled in weaving cloth and silk.

The state of Prussia original: 陂魯斯 (Beilusi), a phonetic variation of Prussia was established not long ago. During the years of the Ming Dynasty The Ming Dynasty ruled China from 1368–1644, it was merely a vassal state original: 諸侯 (zhuhou); referring to the Electorate of Brandenburg within the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation. Because they governed with total loyalty, the King Referring to the Holy Roman Emperor was pleased and granted them further frontier lands. In the 39th year of the Kangxi reign equivalent to 1700–1701, they first began to use the title of King.

The heir to the throne likely referring to Frederick William I, the "Soldier King" was deeply versed in military strategy and his martial skills were peerless. He was also an expert at managing finances, which led the country to become rich and powerful. His successor, Frederick original: 菲得 (Feide); referring to Frederick the Great, r. 1740–1786, found the kingdom’s treasury overflowing. He engaged in rivalries with foreign nations and was victorious in a hundred battles. From that time forward, Prussia's prestige shook the world.

However, later kings were given to excess and dissolution original: 淫湎 (yindian); referring to Frederick William II, and the state gradually declined, suffering defeat in war and great humiliation. The current heir Frederick William III expelled the wicked and corrupt to strengthen the customs of the people. Nevertheless, in the 11th year of the Jiaqing reign 1806, the French original: 佛蘭西 (Folansi) military The text says "navy" (shuijun), though the 1806 campaign was primarily land-based; this may reflect the author's focus on maritime powers invaded the country from the sea. Prussia was defeated, and their losses were beyond counting; they were forced to cede half of their territory. Six years later, they donated funds to recruit...