The Sun.
London, England, 1849-07-12 00:00:00

DENMARK AND THE DUCHIES

DEFEAT OF THE GERMANS BEFORE
FREDERICIA.

The Ilamburgh Borsenhalle of Saturday has the
following :
" At two o'clock on the 6th inst. the Danes made a
sortie with an army 01 sixteen battalions from Fredericia,
and attacked our positions. The accounts are various,
but the attack seems to have been fearful, and our troops
and the batteries have unquestionably suffered very
much. By next post we shall hear the nearer details.
The post-office at Hadersleben, three o'clock in the
afternoon, July 6, 1849."
Communications from the Army Post office at
Kolding :
.. The Danes have made a sortie with 20,000 men from
Fredericia. The army retires upon Vede."
Another account states, from the mouth of a tra
yeller :
" That the 4th Rifles have suffered very much, and
that one battery had been taken by the Danes; but they
had been driven back again, and the same regained."
"Erritsoe, near Fredericia, July 6, 9 o'clock A.M.
. ___

" This morning the Danes made a sortie agsinst our
left wing, drove our troops back, and destroyed several
of our Entrenchments. The sth and 6th battalions of
Schleswig-Holstein Infantry and the 4th Rifles have suf-
fered very much. The Danes forced the Holstein troops
back upon Stenstrup, and set fire to their qaarters, but
were again in turn also driven back. The vanguard and
the right wing are now to attack the Danes in the flank.
The wounded are being conveyed to Bolding. About
fifty Danes are prisoners. Steustrup and several other
villages are in flames, and burning.
•` Hadersleben, July 6.

" During the nights of the sth and 6th inst. the Danes
made a sortie from Fredericia; drove the outposts in,
and captured four pieces of artillery and two howitzers,
which had been placed tbo day before in battery. The
Ist and 2d Holstein Infantry battalion suffered much,
but, being the first troop the enemy encountered, fought
very bravely. Most of the officers have fallen, or are taken
and wounded. How great the loss has been cannot be
made out, but, to judge from the 4th Rifles, the loss must
have been very considerable. The whole of the Danish
army is said to be in Fredericia, and the Guards were
also brought into action, and were opposed to the Ist
Holstein battalion, which suffered so much. Between
three and four o'clock this morning the Holstein troops
succeeded, however, in driving the Danish forces with
considerable loss back again into the fortress."
This account is confirmed by the Altona Mercury,
which is the organ of the Schleswig-Holstein Pro-
visional Government. This journal has the fol

" Altona, Saturday Evening, July 7.

" We had sent our usual matter to press when we re-
ceived the following account from our army
near Fredericia, which, coming from a respectable
party, we publish, and for the present are com-
pellA rather reluctantly to digest, but with the
remark, that as regards the last part of the statement
considerable allowance must be made for the surprise at
first manifested, and the alarm felt, by persons at the dis-
tance. Should the retirement, however, of our troops
from before Fredericia not be a planned affair, the matter
remains earnest enough for us to view; and we must
also feel surprised enough that, on our side, the
troops were not sufficiently prepared for such an attack,
and complete success on the part of the Danes, as the
movements of the Danish ships of war, and the supposed
embarkation of the corps under General Rye, should
have forewarned the General commanding officers of
such a blow being in contemplation."