African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 17: Chapter 14: The Kingdom’s Ambition

Surrender is impossible; Prussia’s ambition is well-known, and Bismarck is about to complete the first step of his major life achievement.

As long as they crush the Danish main force on Als Island, the Danes will lose their last bargaining chip in the war.

June 29, Als Strait.

Als Island is located to the east of the Jutland Peninsula, connected by the Als Strait, which is an extension of the Baltic Sea. The strait’s waters are not expansive.

The strait between Als Island and the Jutland Peninsula is calm, and the sunny weather provides a broad view of the sea. Under these favorable natural conditions, the Prussian army began advancing towards Als Island, attempting to cross the strait.

Prussian engineers constructed floating bridges on the sea, while personnel and weapons started boarding the ferries in the bay.

With the roar of steam, the ferries advanced towards Als Island. Thousands of sails raced forward, the narrow Als Strait crowded with vessels.

Danish lookouts observed the sea situation through telescopes, witnessing the Prussians rapidly approaching the shore. They immediately reported to their command.

The Danish troops, hastily retreating to Als Island, were demoralized by successive defeats with inadequate organization. There was insufficient time to construct fortifications on Als Island.

The Danish forces on the island could only use artillery to disrupt the Prussian landing troops, but the sporadic fire could not deter the Prussians’ resolve.

Under the cover of gunboats, thousands of Prussian troops easily landed on the shores of Als Island. The two sides began fiercely contesting the coast.

The Danes could only rely on makeshift fortifications to fend off the Prussians, but Prussian artillery was continuously being ferried over from the rear.

Once artillery support was in place, the landed Prussians launched their assault, throwing the Danes into chaos. Within a single round, the temporary defenses were destroyed by Prussian artillery fire.

As Prussian infantry charged onto the Danish positions, the demoralized Danish troops raised the white flag after a brief resistance.

The battle for Als Island was the last major engagement for the Allies and Denmark. With the surrender of the Als Island garrison, the Second Schleswig War neared its end.

A few days later, on July 3, the Battle of Lundby broke out, resulting in an Allied victory that left Denmark with no ability to resist.

The Danish government had no choice but to sit at the negotiation table with the German states. As the defeated party, the Danish government declared its surrender, and Prussia and Austria halted their advance. All hostilities ceased, ending the war.

On August 10, 1864, Danish King Christian IX signed a preliminary peace treaty, renouncing his rights over the duchies and turning his support to the Austrian Empire and the Prussian King.

The Vienna Treaty of October 30 resulted in Denmark ceding these territories entirely to Austria and Prussia.

In the Second Schleswig War.

Denmark’s territory retreated 250 kilometers, losing forty percent of its land and nearly forty percent of its population. The total population dropped from 2.6 million to 1.6 million, including 200,000 Danes from the Schleswig region, significantly weakening Denmark’s strength on the Jutland Peninsula.

Through this war, Prussia obtained dominance over the Duchy of Schleswig. Troops began to occupy the Schleswig region, gaining control of the important port city of Kiel. The Kiel Canal became a crucial route bypassing the Danish Strait in the German region, significantly enhancing Prussia’s maritime capabilities.

The Austrian Empire also gained the Duchy of Holstein from this war, resulting in a victory for Prussia and Austria. Thus, the Second Schleswig War concluded.