Why was Karl vom Stein dismissed by Frederick William III in 1807?

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Karl, Reichsfreiherr vom und zum Stein Karl, Reichsfreiherr vom und zum Stein, portrait by Friedrich Olivier, 1820.

Karl vom Stein was dismissed by King Frederick William III on January 3, 1807, due to a personal altercation regarding the structure of the government. Specifically, Stein demanded a ministerial system that operated free from the interference of the King’s personal Cabinet, a request the King rejected.1

It is important to note that this 1807 dismissal occurred during his tenure as minister for manufactures and excise, prior to his later appointment as chief minister. He was dismissed a second time in November 1808 after Napoleon’s agents intercepted a letter in which Stein indiscreetly discussed the likelihood of war against France, leading the King to yield to French pressure.1