Prince Frederick Louis Christian "Ferdinand" of Prussia (; 18 November 1772 – 10 October 1806), was a Prussian prince, soldier, composer and pianist. Prince Louis Ferdinand fought in the Napoleonic Wars. The 1927 German film Prinz Louis Ferdinand was a biopic of his life. Early life Louis Ferdinand was born on 18 November 1772 in Friedrichsfelde Palace, near Berlin. He was a son of Prince August Ferdinand of Prussia and Elisabeth Louise of Brandenburg-Schwedt, and was a nephew of King Frederick the Great. He was given the baptismal name Friedrich Ludwig Christian, but was known as Louis and was soon given the nickname Ferdinand (after his father), so that he could be distinguished from his second degree nephew, also named Louis, Prince Friedrich Ludwig Karl of Prussia (1773–1796). Military career Louis Ferdinand participated in the French Revolutionary Wars, fighting in the War of the First Coalition in 1792 to 1794 near Longwy and Verdun, took part in the Valmy cannonade and was wounded during the Siege of Mainz. Newly promoted to major general, he took part in the Battle of Kaiserslautern in November 1793. On 23 February 1795 Louis Ferdinand was appointed chief of the “von Baden” infantry regiment. From the end of May 1796, he served as a brigadier to the corps of his nephew, which was intended to cover the demarcation line in Westphalia. On the occasion of the military review at Petershagen, Louis Ferdinand was promoted to lieutenant general on 2 June 1799, with a patent from 20 May 1799. In 1806, he was one of the principal advocates of resuming the war against Napoleon and the First French Empire, triggering the War of the Fourth Coalition. He died during the opening engagement of the war, at the Battle of Saalfeld. Louis Ferdinand was in command of 8,300 men when he advanced against marshall Jean Lannes' V Corps as they attempted to break out from the passes of Thuringian Forest. In that battle, he engaged a much larger French force (12,800 men), led by Lannes himself. The French held the high ground, while the Prussians had the Saale River behind their backs, which would make a retreat difficult. When he saw his forces beginning to rout, Louis Ferdinand charged the French cavalry. He was killed in combat by Jean-Baptiste Guindey, quartermaster of the French 10th Hussars, after Louis Ferdinand refused an offer to surrender and wounded the