Chapter 14 The ambition of the kingdom
It was impossible to stop. Prussia's heart was known to everyone on the road. Bismarck was about to complete the first step of a major achievement in his life.
As long as the main Danish force on Als Island is defeated, the Danes will lose their last bargaining chip in the war.
June 29, Als Island Fjord.
Als Island is located in the east of Jutland Peninsula and is connected by the Als Fjord. The fjord is an extension of the Baltic Sea and the fjord water is not wide.
The fjord between Als Island and Jutland is calm and the sunny weather gives a wide view of the sea. Under favorable natural conditions, the Prussian army began to march towards Als Island and attempted to cross the fjord.
Prussian engineers built pontoons on the sea, and men and weapons began to board the ferries in the bay.
With the roar of steam, the ferry advanced towards the Als Island. Thousands of sails competed, hundreds of boats competed, and the narrow Als Fjord was densely packed with ships.
The Danish observers observed the sea conditions through telescopes. The Prussians were driving towards the coast at high speed. When they saw such a scene, they immediately reported to their superiors.
The Danish army, which hastily retreated to Als Island, was hit by successive defeats in the war. Its morale was low, its organizational strength was far insufficient, and it was too late to build fortifications on Als Island in a short period of time.
The Danish army on the island could only use artillery to interfere with the Prussian landing troops. Sporadic artillery fire could not stop the Prussian determination.
Under the cover of gunboats, thousands of Prussian troops easily landed on the coast of Als Island. Both sides began a fierce battle for the coast.
Denmark can now only rely on simple fortifications to block Prussia, but the Prussian artillery is being continuously transported from the rear through ships and pontoons.
After the artillery support was in place, the landing Prussians launched an attack. The Danes quickly fell into chaos. The makeshift defenses were destroyed by Prussian artillery fire in just one round.
As the Prussian infantry rushed into the Danish position, the demoralized Danish army raised the white flag after a brief resistance.
Als was the last large-scale battle between the Allies and Denmark. With the surrender of the defenders of Als, the Second Schleswig War came to an end.
A few days later on July 3rd. The Battle of Lundby broke out, the Allied forces won, and Denmark lost all ability to resist.
The Danish government had to sit at the negotiating table and negotiate with the German countries. As the loser of the war, the Danish government announced that it would give up resistance. Prussia and Austria also stopped. All hostilities between the two sides ceased and the war ended.
On August 10, 1864, King Christian IX of Denmark signed a preliminary peace treaty, giving up his rights in the two principalities in favor of the Austrian Empire and the King of Prussia.
At the Treaty of Vienna on October 30, Denmark ceded all these areas to Austria and Prussia.
Second Schleswig War.
Denmark retreated 250 kilometers, losing 40% of its land and nearly 40% of its population. The total population dropped from 2.6 million to 1.6 million, including 200,000 Danes in the Schleswig area, and Denmark in Jutland. The strength on the peninsula was greatly reduced.
Prussia gained dominance over the Principality of Schleswig through this war. The army began to station in the Schleswig area and acquired the important port city of Kiel. The Kiel Canal was an important channel for the German region to bypass the Denmark Strait, which greatly improved Prussia's seagoing capabilities.
The Austrian Empire also obtained the Principality of Holstein in this war. The war ended in Prussia's victory, and the Second Schleswig War came to an end.