Liebe Kinder, gute Kameraden

»Dear Children, Good Companions«

The picture of the tobacco college of Friedrich Wilhelm I in Königs Wusterhausen Palace, painted by Georg Lisiewski in 1736/37, conceals a message which until now has not been understood. The present study unveils this work, through a detailed investigation of the figures’ appearance, as an idealized description of a place of longing, in which the king, a complex character, wanted to experience unadulterated filial love and the unconditional loyalty of his companions.