HARDENBERG, KARL AUGUST, FRST VON

( (prince of), ) born May 31, 1750, Essenrode, near Gifhorn, Brunswick died Nov. 26, 1822, Genoa also called (until 1814) Freiherr (baron) Von Hardenberg Prussian statesman and administrator, who preserved the integrity of the Prussian state during the Napoleonic Wars. Domestically he was able to continue the reforms introduced by Karl, Freiherr vom Stein; in foreign affairs he exchanged Prussia's alliance with France for an alliance with Russia in 1813, and in 181415 he represented Prussia at the peace negotiations in Paris and Vienna. Hardenberg vainly fought for the establishment of a constitution but gained lasting fame for his liberalization of financial, economic, and agricultural policies and for his conduct of foreign affairs, which created the political requisites for Prussia's liberation from French rule in 181315.