War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

The war between Prussia and Denmark has been going on for more than half a year, but neither side has suffered many casualties.

But at this time, neither side is willing to continue fighting, because compared with the direct losses of the war, the indirect economic losses are unbearable for both sides.

Prussia mobilized nearly 100,000 troops, with a maximum of nearly 200,000 troops, and Denmark also had nearly 80,000 troops, including thousands of Swedish and British volunteers.

In addition, the Danes also mobilized 300,000 civilians to maintain the logistics supply of the front-line troops. Although Prussia has some advantages in railways and canals, it also needs 50,000 civilians and 12,000 mules and horses, as well as 3,000 carts.

In fact, in order to cope with the huge consumption brought by the war, Friedrich List, the Minister of Finance who returned to Prussia again, proposed to build a railway to transport supplies in the Principality of Schleswig-Holstein.

In Friedrich List's eyes, this is the best way to reduce war losses, which has been recognized by many Prussian senior officials.

Because this not only reduces the transportation cost of materials, but also allows for rapid mobility of troops and reduces the cost of occupation.

The Prussian military even planned to build a railway network in the Schleswig-Holstein area and establish several military fortresses to strengthen defense and train new soldiers.

However, William IV would never dare to do so. He was forced to send troops to Denmark by the National Assembly, and no one promised to give the land of Schleswig-Holstein to Prussia.

So William IV would rather choose to use people to carry horses than to build a railway for other countries.

Denmark's infrastructure construction is very poor, and the total length of domestic railways is only more than 30 kilometers. It is only one-seventieth of Prussia and one-three-hundredth of the Austrian Empire.

Fortunately, the Danes have the help of the British Navy, and they can relieve some of the pressure through sea transportation. However, Denmark's defense on the north bank of the Ida River has been in disrepair for a long time and cannot withstand Prussia's artillery fire, so it has to recruit civilians for repair.

Compared with the dilapidated fortress, the crumbling river embankment is more fatal to the Danes. The south bank is close to the German region, so it is relatively rich, and the river embankment is built tall and solid.

The north bank was often flooded, so the population was decreasing, and the river bank was naturally in disrepair. Therefore, the Danes had to build not only fortresses but also river banks, which was a waste of money and labor.

The war lasted for half a year, and Prussia lost 5,000 people and Denmark lost nearly 10,000 people. This was not because the Prussian army fought bravely. The number of people who died on the battlefield on both sides did not exceed 3,000.

The vast majority of the remaining people died from various diseases and accidents. Cholera, dysentery, typhoid, and various inexplicable infectious diseases were rampant in the army.

In fact, with the medical level of this era, it is impossible for hundreds of thousands of people to gather in areas outside the city in summer without problems.

In addition, under the influence of nationalism, the number of casualties in civil hatred was even greater, but it was difficult to count so it was not included.

What was even more fatal for Denmark was that after the war with Prussia, Denmark unilaterally withdrew from the German Customs Union.

The result was a shortage of domestic materials and soaring prices. Domestic merchants joined forces with British and Swedish merchants to not only eat up Denmark's economic achievements over the years, but also swallowed up the money Denmark earned from selling colonies, and even put the government in debt.

King Frederick VII of Denmark was not a smart man, but he also knew that he could not continue.

The appearance of Frederick VII at this time surprised the monarchs attending the meeting.

After all, the National Assembly had previously attacked Denmark in the name of the German Empire, and the Kingdom of Denmark took the initiative to withdraw from the German Customs Union in protest, and then asked for help from Britain and France. The two sides should be considered to have torn their faces.

However, someone soon figured out the joints. When could the National Assembly represent Germany? It was just a group of traitors.

Frederick VII and William IV, two enemies, were extremely jealous when they met, but both kings were proud of their status and were afraid of Franz, their master, so they just looked at each other and nothing happened.

Ramond Ditlev was the foreign minister of Denmark at that time, and also a famous orator in history. As the mouthpiece of Frederick VII, he decided to strike first.

"Your Majesties, we are a peace-loving country in Denmark, but in the past seven months we have been shamelessly attacked and besieged, and the invaders have occupied a large area of ​​​​Schleswig-Holstein."

Ramond Ditlev's words were very sharp. He immediately put a big hat of an invader on Prussia and defined the war. Whoever helps Prussia speak will be Prussia's accomplice.

However, Denmark has offended Prussia badly in this way, and I am afraid that the Prussians will not let it go so easily.

At this time, only to hear Ramond Ditlev change the subject.

"All this stems from the instigation of the Frankfurt National Assembly. They made the two nations that originally loved each other kill each other.

So what reason do we have to continue this mistake now?"

Ramond Ditlev's words made sense. There were many knowledgeable people present, but they couldn't think of a reason to refute it for a while.

Ramond Ditlev didn't give everyone time to think carefully. He decided to strike while the iron was hot.

"I propose that everything be restored to its original state, and our country will no longer pursue the losses caused by the war. Do you agree, Your Majesty?"

Ramond Ditlev looked at William IV, which made the latter feel like he was riding a tiger. Stopping the war and withdrawing troops back home would undoubtedly be beneficial to both sides, but it seemed a little strange, but he couldn't explain it clearly.

“What will happen to the Germans in Schleswig-Holstein?”

A voice broke the silence, and Ramond Ditlev immediately answered with a smile.

"They will live happily on this land just like in the past. They can even apply for passports and visit their relatives' homes."

This sentence can fool most people, but Franz is not included.

"I am asking you, Your Majesty the Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, which country's laws will you rule by."

".Danish Constitution"

Frederick VII did not have the courage to face Franz directly, he only dared to tell the truth.

"That won't work. You are also the Duke of Schleswig-Holstein. The local Germans account for 80%. It is obviously inappropriate for you to use Danish laws."

In fact, the local Germans are mainly concentrated in Holstein, and the Schleswig area is mainly Danish, but Franz deliberately counted the two places together.

"Your Majesty! This is our internal affairs in Denmark!"

Ramond Ditlev protested loudly as he looked at his unsatisfactory monarch, and Louis-Philippe retorted loudly.

"This is the German Confederation!"