The life story of Joachim Nettelbeck is one of the most fascinating biographies in German maritime history of the 18th century. Born in 1738 in Kolberg, the son of a shoemaker goes to sea at the age of eleven. Later, he earns his captain's license and becomes a shipowner. For a time, he is employed as a captain in Prussian service but is dismissed after a dispute with his superior. After losing a large part of his fortune in a shipwreck in 1783, he begins a successful second career as a brewer and distiller. He also makes a name for himself in local politics in Koberger, particularly through his advocacy for the concerns of ordinary people. Nettelbeck gains legendary fame in 1806 when he defends his hometown against Napoleon's troops alongside Neidhardt von Gneisenau. In his memoirs, published in 1822, two years before his death, Nettelbeck reflects on the various stages of his eventful biography. The reader gains insight into the life of an extraordinary man and the eventful Prussian history of the 18th and early 19th centuries.