Back Wilhelm I van Duitsland AF Guillén I d'Alemanya AN فيلهلم الأول (إمبراطور ألماني) Arabic فيلهلم الاول ARZ Guillermu I d'Alemaña AST I Vilhelm (Almaniya imperatoru) AZ بیرینجی ویلهلم ، امپراتور (آلمان) AZB Вільгельм I Гогенцолерн BE Вилхелм I Bulgarian Gwilherm Iañ (Alamagn) BR
Kaiser Wilhelm I (Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig von Hohenzollern; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) of the Hohenzollern family was a king of Prussia from January 2, 1861 – 9 March 1888. He was the first German Emperor (18 January 1871 – 9 March 1888). In English, his first name means "William", which is sometimes used instead.
Because his brother Frederick William IV of Prussia had a stroke in 1857, Wilhelm became Prince Regent and actual ruler. His brother died in 1861 and Wihelm became King. When Wilhelm was king of Prussia, he and his prime minister, Otto von Bismarck, worked on the unification of Germany, from a large group of smaller German countries. Winning the Franco-Prussian War allowed the start of the German Empire.
His grandson Wilhelm II ordered the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche to be built to honour his life and achievements.