Wilhelm II, German Emperor despite appeals from the Allies. King George V wrote that he looked on his cousin as "the greatest criminal in history", but opposed Prime Minister David Lloyd George's proposal to "hang the Kaiser". President Woodrow Wilson of the United States opposed extradition, arguing that prosecuting Wilhelm would destabilize international order and lose the peace. Wilhelm first settled in Amerongen, where on 28 November he issued a belated statement of abdication from both the Prussian and imperial thrones, thus formally ending the Hohenzollerns' 400-year rule over Prussia. Accepting the reality that he had lost both of his crowns for good, he
SMS Kaiser Wilhelm II and the removal of some of her searchlights. While the ship was laid up, "Admiral" Hans von Koester replaced Hoffmann as the fleet commander, a position he would hold until the end of 1906. The annual training routine began at the end of March 1901 with squadron exercises in the Baltic. On the night of 1–2 April, "Kaiser Friedrich III" ran hard aground on the Adlergrund, a shoal to the east of Cape Arkona, and "Kaiser Wilhelm II" lightly brushed the bottom. After a short inspection, it was determined that "Kaiser Wilhelm II" was undamaged, and so Prince Heinrich transferred