IV.

History

The duchies of Schleswig and Holstein long figured prominently in the political history of northwestern Europe. The Danes always regarded Schleswig as Danish, and Holstein had become completely Germanized at an early period. In 1460 Schleswig and Holstein became allied to the Danish government during the reign of Christian I of Denmark, heir to Schleswig and Holstein. The two duchies remained legally separate, however, from Denmark. Frederick VII of Denmark announced his intention in 1848 of incorporating them into Denmark. The people of Schleswig-Holstein rebelled and appealed to Germany for military aid. Prussian troops and Schleswig-Holstein forces drove the Danes from Schleswig. In 1849, aided by Britain, Russia, and France, Denmark renewed the struggle, and eventually Prussia abandoned Schleswig-Holstein.

In 1864 Prussian and Austrian forces advanced into Schleswig. Christian IX of Denmark had to relinquish his claims to Schleswig and Holstein. Under the terms of the Treaty of Vienna, written in 1864, the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein were ceded to Prussia and Austria. The terms of the Convention of Gastein in 1865 gave the administration of Schleswig to Prussia and that of Holstein to Austria. The ambitions of these rival powers soon led to the Seven Weeks' War (1866), which was followed by the formal incorporation of Schleswig-Holstein, including the former duchy of Lauenburg, as a province of Prussia.

Among the terms of the Treaty of Versailles following World War I (1914-1918) was a provision calling for a plebiscite in Schleswig. The northern zone, which voted three to one for Danish control, was incorporated into Denmark. The southern zone voted overwhelmingly in favor of Germany, and became part of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. At the end of World War II (1939-1945), German Schleswig-Holstein was included in the British Zone of Occupation. It subsequently became a state of West Germany. In 1990, West and East Germany united and became the Federal Republic of Germany.