The
Unconditional Peace in Vienna.
It was a very depressed Denmark soldiers returned to.
This is clearly reflected in the king, Christian IX's, proclamation
to
the returning soldiers :
Soldiers!
The battle has ended!
From war's bloody journeyyou
return to your normal doings.
The
war has claimed its heavy tolls, and even even
heavier tolls may peace be
purchased.
But the well of the
Homeland
forces us to prefer peace rather
than a continued conflict.
I know that your courage is unwavering - I know that the army is still
prepared to take up battle against the enemy - but we
can't control the uotcome,
and while being fought, is the preponderant part of the land in the
enemy's posession and suffers
from a pressure, which will soon lead to
destruction.
Therefore the hostilities
must be ended,
even with Abandonment of
Land Elements, that from ancient times
have belonged to Denmark and to which all Danish hearts belong.
For you, soldiers,
is the outcome of the battle double heavy. You
struggled and your blood ran for a cause, we now
have had to abandon.
But you leave this battle with glory.
out of battle.
It must be acknowledged that the task you from the
beginning were ordered to do, was more than difficult;
against the armies of
two Great Powers, you were only a
small unit.
Any hope for help failed, the enemy's superior force forced you back but
not his power nor winter's harshness
weakend
your courage.
Therefore, before you depart,
accept the gratitude of your king.
With deep grief, I have followed you in your deed
and with
sorrow mixed
pride I've seen
your journey.
Preserve with calmness your future peaceful occupations
and the self-sacrifice
you
have shown in battle. Retain, above all, the love
to King and country which
Patriotic has guided you.
With Providence
Assistance Denmark will still be able to hope for happy
Future, although the nearest time seams
dark and menacing.
Act in peace, what I have
acted in battle, and you will help
your country well, as
you have so far defented its
honor.
Copenhagen, August 8th 1864
Christian R.
Staff
Headquarters in Soender-
borg in both 1884 and 1864
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Memorial 2010 |
The
Peace talks after the defeat
took place in the old imperial Vienna and
the Danish negotiators were placed on a
impossible
mission.
After months of wrangling, during which the German occupation troops
plundered the population of
Jutland, it ended
with a purely German diktation.
At peace,
October 30th 1864, Denmark had to
give up the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein and
Lauenburg to Prussia
and
Austria.
Thus we at the peace lost almost 40% of our land and population.
Denmark was now a tiny state of only 1.7 million
inhabitants.
According
to the
peace treaty it was possible for the inhabitants of the transferred areas to
preserve their Danish
citizenship
and remain in their homes
if they "did not fall for trouble."
Since it entirely up to the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871
was figured a new war between Denmark and Germany
was possible,
many chose to move to Denmark.
The Danish-minded Schleswigers did not want to fight against
their fellow
countrymen in a new war.
There was,
as we know, no more military confrontations between
Prussia or
Germany, and nobody could have guessed that
many
Slesvigers 42 years later would be conscripted into service by the
Imperial German army and had to fight on distant
fronts during the first
World War II.
Approx
5000 of them perished.
| |
Prussian monoment for the victory
at Dybboel on the redoubt
IV |
Prussian monoment for the victory
at the
Arnkil peninsula |
In
mid-May 1945 unknown persons,
probably
former resistance fighters,
blew
the german victory
monuments in Dybbøl and Arnkil and a German
monument at Knivsbjerg. |
 |
The
Danish Leaders During the
Wars:
Primeminister Bishop D.G.
Monrad plunged following the defeat of religious books and emigrated in
1865 as a pioneeer
to
New Zealand.
On his return he again became Bishop.
Monrad died in 1887.
Commanding
General de Meza was under pressure from the
mob and
the tabloid press in Copenhagen after having saved
his army out
of the impossible situation of Dannevirke.
This was in contradiction with D.G.Monrads
orde:
Dannevirke was under no cirkumstances to be
vacated
untill 1 / 3 of the men
(10-15.000) were killed or wounded.
De Meza never recovered from this injustice, and he died sick and
broken in 1865.
It has
though many years been
broad
agreed, that he did the only possible and
acted military correct.
General Gerlach took over as commanding general for the Meza, but
was dismissed after the war.
He made the opposite
mistake of de
Meza, and followed Monrads orders
and kept the army at the Dybboel position whereby
the entire army was virtually destroyed.
Gerlach died disappointed and broken in 1865.
The road leading to the gate to
the Sønderborg barracks is named after
the General, Gerlach Street.
General
du Plat who, in recognition of the impossible situation just
before the final Prussian attack at the Dybboel strong-
hold, offered the seriously ill
commanding General
Gerlach to take command as the oldest officer and responsibly bring the
troops back to the peninsula Als, was killed south of
the
redoubts.
This occurred while he tried to
inspire the soldiers from the
destoyed redoubts of a
renewed counterattack.
Amonumednt is
raised on the place where he
was killed.
He is buried
at the Soderup Cemetery.
General Hegermann-Lindencrone that pulled
the fourth
Division's 9000 men up through Jutland tinstead of
staying
in the
Dybbøl redoubts continued his military career until 1867, where
he is dismissed.
There has been much discussion about whether the march up through
Jutland was the right thing to do.
General Raasløff, who fought under the first
Schleswig War (Isted and Fredericia) resigned in 1851 and went to USA
where
he
for a long time worked for the sale of the West Indies.
He believed it was a most risky foreign policy for Denmark to be
part of the colonial conflict between
the great powers.
He was called back to Denmark and deployed as war minister in 1866
to prepare
the new army-law
of 1867.
Raasløff died in 1883.
General Bülow became political example of the appointment of higher
commanders.
He was as colonel nearly
dismissed by
reason of infirmity, but in an interview with the War
Minister, he discovered that Bülow
had the skills gthe army needed
desperately. The ability of leading
in war.
Since the discussion after 1865 raged about good and bad
officers Bülows example was
highlighted as the leader who
was
created
to war less than the satisfactory
life in the barracks, drills and
politic smalltalk.
Bülow had, like Meza and Gerlach problems with
the ministers of war.
The outcome of Fredericia in 1848 was in direct
contradiction
with the Secretary of War C.F.
Hansen, and probably only the successful operation saves Bülow
from
dismissal.
In 1856 Bülow
resigned from the
army and lived on Sandbjerg Castle on Sundeved until his death in
1858.
Bülow is buried in Dybbøl Cemetery.
Memorials at the stronghold Dybboel
2010
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