Marie said it was too bad she was so young and didn't realize the significance of these statements until many years later after Ludwig was gone.  So, I decided to find out about this King, and went surfing the internet.

Below you will see the progression of the royal family from 1640 to 1918.  It is interesting in the information following the chart that a lot of the family names are the same as the Fiebelkorn family names: Christine, Louisa, Wilhelm, Fredrick (variations:  Ferdinand, Frederand), Karl, Louis, Henry, etc.
 
Since what we know of the Fiebelkorn family shows that they were laborers/farmers, it is interesting to note that Friedrich Wilhelm III also married Auguste von Harrach (1800-1873) whom he created Princess von Liegnitz - it was a morganatic marriage.

Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary says:  MORGANATIC (mor-ge-nat-ik): of or relating to a marriage between a member of a royal or noble family and a person of inferior rank in which the rank of the inferior partner remains unchanged and the children of the marriage do not succeed to the titles, fiefs, or entailed property of the parent of higher rank.

This could very well be the connection that Ludwig often spoke of.
 

Friedrich Wilhelm I, King of PRUSSIA

Family 1: Sophie Dorothea of Great BRITAIN
MARRIAGE: 28 NOV 1706, Berlin

   1.Frederick LOUIS
   2.Frederick WILLIAM
   3.Frederick II, King of PRUSSIA
   4.Charlotte ALBERTINE
   5.Frederica LOUISE
   6.Philippine CHARLOTTE
   7.Louis Charles WILLIAM
   8.Sophie Dorothea MARIE
   9.Louise ULRIKA
  10.August Wilhelm, Prince of PRUSSIA
  11.Anna AMELIA
  12.Henry
  13.Ferdinand
Notes
Friedrich Wilhelm I "laid down principles which continued to be followed long after his death; he was one of the greatest administrators who have ever worn the Prussia crown." - Encycl. Brit. (1956), 9:724.
 

Friedrich Wilhelm II, King of PRUSSIA

Father: August Wilhelm, Prince of PRUSSIA
Mother: Luise Amalie of BRUNSWICK-WOLFENBUTTEL

Family 1: Frederike Luise of HESSE-DARMSTADT
MARRIAGE: 14 JUL 1769, Charlottenburg

   1.Friedrich Wilhelm III, King of PRUSSIA
   2.Christine
   3.Louis
   4.Wilhelmina
   5.Augusta
   6.Friedrich Wilhelm Karl, PRINCE

Notes
Friedrich Wilhelm II also married (1) 14 July 1765 in Charlottenburg Elizabeth Christine of Brunswick (b. 8 Nov 1746, d. 18 Feb 1840) with whom he had Frederica Charlotte of Prussia (b. 7 May 1767, d. 6 Aug 1820, married Frederick Hanover [b. 16 Aug 1763, d. 5 Jan 1827], Duke of York). Friedrich Wilhelm II and Elizabeth divorced in 1769.
 

Friedrich Wilhelm III, King of PRUSSIA

Family 1: Luise Auguste of MECKLENBURG
MARRIAGE: 24 DEC 1793, Berlin

   1.Frederick William IV, King of PRUSSIA
   2.William I, Emperor of GERMANY
   3.Alexandra FEODOROVNA
   4.Ferdinand
   5.Louisa of PRUSSIA
   6.Albert of PRUSSIA

Notes
Friedrich Wilhelm III also married Auguste von Harrach (1800-1873) whom he created Princess von Liegnitz - it was a morganatic marriage.

MORGANATIC: of or relating to a marriage between a member of a royal or noble family and a person of inferior rank in which the rank of the inferior partner remains unchanged and the children of the marriage do not succeed to the titles, fiefs, or entailed property of the parent of higher rank.
 

Frederick William IV, King of PRUSSIA

Frederick William IV had a paralysing stroke in the summer of 1857 and lost his powers of reason; on Oct. 7, 1858 his brother William was formally recognized as regent.
 

William I, Emperor of GERMANY

Family 1: Augusta of SAXE-WEIMAR
MARRIAGE: 11 JUN 1829

   1.Frederick III, Emperor of GERMANY
   2.Louise
 

Frederick III, Emperor of GERMANY

OCCUPATION: [Prince of Prussia]
Father: William I, Emperor of GERMANY
Mother: Augusta of SAXE-WEIMAR

Family 1: Victoria Adelaide MARY
MARRIAGE: 25 JAN 1858, London, England

   1.William II, Emperor of GERMANY
   2.Charlotte
   3.Henry of PRUSSIA
   4.Sigismund
   5.Victoria
   6.Waldemar
   7.Sophie of PRUSSIA
   8.Margarete
 

William II, Emperor of GERMANY

Family 1: Augusta of SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN

   1.William of PRUSSIA
   2.Eitel Frederick of PRUSSIA
   3.Adalbert of PRUSSIA
   4.Augustus William of PRUSSIA
   5.Oscar of PRUSSIA
   6.Joachim of PRUSSIA
   7.Victoria Louise of PRUSSIA

William II also married Nov. 5, 1922 Hermine of Reuss (b. Dec. 17, 1887, d. Aug. 7, 1947). As
emperor, he was the "Kaiser Wilhem" of World War I.
 
 

NOW FOR A LITTLE HISTORY........

 Although Trochu had more troops available for defense inside the city than the 146,000 men General Helmuth von Moltke had for the offense, the French general did nothing to challenge the seige. On 8 October 1870 Gambetta made a dramatic escape from Paris by balloon to rally support in the provinces.

 On 29 November 1870 Trochu launched his first attempt to break through the Prussian lines. Called the Great Sortie, the attack carried across the Marne River to the southeast before it was repulsed.  French casualties numbered 5,236 whereas the Prussians lost 2,091 troops. Again on 21 December 1870 the French thrust out at the seige lines. This time in the Le Bourget region in the northeast. The French were forced back after losing more than 2,000 troops compared with the 500 Prussian losses. The Prussian guns ringing Paris began a general bombardment of the city on 27 December 1870. Approximately 12,000 shells fell on the city during the next three weeks killing 27 people and injuring another 278.

 By mid-January French resistance in the provinces had been crushed. With only an eight-day supply of food remaining in the city, Paris surrendered on 28 January 1871. The siege had cost the French over 28,450 military casualties, of which less than 4,000 were killed. The provisional goverment accepted peace terms on 1 March 1871. Meanwhile on 18 January 1871, in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, Wilhelm I had been proclaimed emperor of Germany. The three successful wars in six years, engineered by Otto von Bismark, the Iron Chancellor, had forged an empire based upon the kingdom of Prussia.
Excerpts from An Encyclopedia of Battles by David Eggenberger published by Dover Publications.
 
 

EVER WONDER ABOUT WHERE BEER STEINS CAME FROM?  WELL, HERE IS SOME HISTORY AND A GREAT STORY ABOUT.......

 At the age of ninety, Wilhelm I died on March 9,1888, and his son, Friedrich III, ascended the throne. An ill-fated man who had waited so long to be emperor and king, he was to rule for only 99 days, dying of throat cancer on June 15th of the same year.

 Wilhelm II, now Kaiser at the age of 29, came to power and with him came an era conducive to the widespread use of regimental souvenirs in general, and regimental steins in particular. Nationalism, on the upswing since the success of the Franco-Prussian War, found its leading exponent in Wilhelm, devoted to German nationalism and the expansion of the military system. In the same timeframe came a change in the active duty requirements for reservists, altering the length of service in mounted units from five years to three, and from three to two years for other units. A popular change, it made the military service more attractive for reservists, though it required that more of them would be called to active duty.

 Military service obligation extended from the close of a man's 17th year to the completion of the 45th. From 17 to 20 a reservist could volunteer for active service and was eligible to request a particular branch of service and unit, and would be so assigned if a vacancy existed and the unit commander agreed to accept him. Without prior volunteering, a reservist became eligible for active service at the end of the 20th year. If qualified and called up, he could request a branch of service and unit — but was assigned based on the needs of the service, his physical condition, and his civilian occupation. Cavalry and horse-mounted artillery units required three years of active duty while other units required two. Naval reservists were normally called from naval districts and served three years. A one-year volunteer program existed which allowed certain personnel with the requisite educational and character requirements to serve for a single year. His parents, or guardians, had to agree to pay for the man's uniforms, equipment, rations and quarters. These men normally returned to the reserves at the completion of their tour and, in time, became reserve officers. Provisions were made for certain professions, such as doctors and teachers, to participate in this program.

 The five branches of the army were the infantry, cavalry, artillery, pionier (engineer), and the military train. There were also technical service units such as Eisenbahn (railway), Telegraphen (telegraph), and Luftschiffer (airship). Volunteers for all units provided men for the Schutztruppen (colonial troops). The navy was a separate department, responsible only to the Kaiser.

 Reservists reported to their units in early October and the training was provided by the unit, as opposed to the American concept of using basic training centers. After the duty tour was accomplished, the reservist returned home in late September.  This system of reporting as a class and leaving with the same group lent itself to the concept of purchasing active duty remembrances, much as an American boy or girl would obtain a high school or college ring. The list of souvenirs was long and varied, including, but not limited to, steins, pipes, flasks, glasses, individual and group photos, certificates, demitasse cups and saucers, clocks, swords, bayonets, paper weights, and many others. In some cases more than a single memento was purchased. Steins seem to have been the most popular purchases, judging by the number that have been located. The period of popularity extended from the mid 1890s until the onset of World War I. Examples exist from the 1850s on, but were few in number and individually purchased items. Almost all early examples came from Bavarian units. Steins with wartime dates also exist but the demands of the war in terms of men and material effectively ended the manufacture of regimental steins as we know them. Regimental steins of German manufacture also exist from units of the armies of France, Austria, Italy and Hungary.

 Steins were ordered from military shops in the area around the garrison town or through the representatives of stein manufacturers. Normally ordered in the spring, they were delivered in early September, just prior to mustering out. The average cost approximated a month's salary for a German private of that period. Steins could also be purchased on an individual basis, often following discharge from active duty.  Steins without rosters are representative of such purchases,
 although many examples, particularly of early dated pieces, also exist without rosters.

 Regimental steins were produced from a variety of materials, including porcelain, pottery, stoneware, glass and pewter.  Normally found in ½-liter and 1-liter sizes, there are existing examples of 0.3-liter, 0.4-liter, 0.6-liter, and 2-liter dimensions.  Special character steins in the shape of skulls, sailors, and soldiers also exist and enhance any collection lucky enough to have one.
 
Reprinted by permission from Prosit, the Journal of Stein Collectors International, Issue No. 65, September 1981