On March 24th, 1756, ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐๐๐๐ถ๐ฎ (Frederick II, Friedrich der Groรe or Der Alte Fritz) announced in Silesia that farmers should start planting potatoes. This decree is called "๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ต๐น" or "๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐ฟ๐น๐ฎ๐๐" (potato order, edict).
Ten years before a similar decree was issued to the people of Pomerania because of a famine. Altogether, there were probably around 15 different ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ต๐น๐ฒ.
It took a while before the potato became the staple of German cuisine as it is now. Mostly because it wasn't clear to the people which part of the potato was to be eaten and how exactly to grow it.
But nowadays, you can't imagine Germany without all kinds of forms of potatoes: potato salad, fried potatoes (๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ธ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ป), potato pancakes (๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ฝ๐๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฟ), potato dumplings, french fries (with mayo), salted potatoes (๐ฆ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ธ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ป), boiled potatoes (๐ฃ๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ธ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ป, preferably with herring in a creamy sauce), potato au gratin (๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐น๐ด๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ป) and mashed potatoes. And probably a couple of regional varieties that I either forgot or don't know about.
What's your favorite potato dish?
Photo: Friedrich II. inspiziert auf einer seiner Inspektionsreisen den Kartoffelanbau (โDer Kรถnig รผberallโ, Gemรคlde von Robert Warthmรผller, 1886). Frederick inspects the potato cultivation ("The King everywhere", painting by Robert Warthmรผller, 1886), public domain.