The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-04-03

THE GERMAN DUCHIES AND DEN
From the N. Y. journal cf Commercial
A certain amount Of excitement has been caused ia
northem Europe by the resolution of the Qermsnio
u take active steps ia defence Of the rghts vi
the German Duches of Holsein and Schleswig and the
drination Of the Prince Regent Of Prussia to take
prominent part in the movement notwithstanding hese
demonstrations Denmark has not evinced any inclination
aate her pctensons To consent to the Asrossfou
of that mart of her new whole State constitution by
which the independent rgL.s OF the Gcrmsnic Duchies
are annued and they directly Incorporated with the
rest of the kingdom II is true that she has P'omsd all
OF concessions and indulgcncies to her ieutonic de
Tendencies if they would only assent to he submerged
but they have absolutely declined and appealed Tor
aid and the cabinet OF Copenhagen have been
Obstinate it is thought by the aarsts that the peacc OF
Europe n danger, and by Others who, we fancy are
nearly right that the matter will he settled BY
European conference If the little Scandinavian Kingdom
does not yield gracefully to the Of two such great
powers Prussia and Austria. The last accounts from
Europe state that there prospect that his Majesty
will take the latter course the avowed for the
concession being the feeble state Of his health.
If popular rights, whether territorial political
alone regarded in the settlement OF this dispute there
would not seem to be very much difficulty In arriving
Just solution but the European powers have lately
adopted 30 generally as political axiom the ll-known
saying of Louis XIvsF Eat c est MOS and have seem
ed regard nation farm in fee simple to be sold,
exchanged, or willed his descendants by the
the King together with the live stock the people, that
strange the Duches should prefer to have their
fate decided German question: by the German Diet,
being obliged to submit to the arbitration OF congress
of European powers.
II would be a tedious and needless task to trace In
detail the grounds of the Danish and 0ermen preten-
sions to the Duchies 1t will suffice for ensral un
derstanding of the question to state tho leading points
of the of the litigant An old proverb which
that the river Elder is the extreme boundary Of the
Roman empire is cited by the Danes positive proof
that the Duchy of Scheswg which north of the Elder
is part of Denmark and the Germans quote any guam
tty of extracts from old documents to show that the
provinces German among Others, extracts from
speech made by Barbarossa (ll2lll90) to the Popes
legates which he speaks Of Scheswig and Hosein
belonging to Germany and from remonstrance address
I'd at earlier period to Conrad H. Emperor Of Ger
many QO27 lO93) by the princes of the empire, for
his insufficient protection Of Schleswiga part Of his
dominions' But apart from these primeval records
there abundant evidence that for many hundred years
prior to the middle of the fifteenth century the Duches
independent States governed by their native rulers
and enjoying large amount OF political and social bcr
ty When the two reignng families became extinct IN
consequence of the OF the middle ages In the year
1859 the knights of the Duches assembled to elect
common sovereign, and, after protraced and stormy
discussion in the Of which hard blows
struck, they elected Christian King Of Denmark Swe
den, and Norway, their Duke the condition sol
EMMY accepted and to, that the Duches to
continue independent States only recognising the person
of the Scandinavian King their sovereign Tho docu
ment in which This compact imbOlied duly
cuted by the representatives of the Duches and King
Christian in March, AGO.
|
ants Of this Christian and their title to Sehlewig
Hosein is therefore about the that BY which tile
soveregns OF the House of Hanover held Great Britain
and the Emperor Of Austria ruled in Hungary. From
being great European power Denmark has been rapidly
declining She lost Sweden in 1929 and Norway in 1914
and has therefore been the desire Of the Danish rulers
to what left to them by the adoption Of the
whole State systematic concentration of all the do
minons Of the King under constitution and form of
government Various unsuccessful attempts made
at different times to incorporate the Duchies and
! the 18th of July, l84s Christian VIII made formal
claim to absolute sovereignty them and annexed
the Duchies to Denmark onally This act caused
the people Of Schleswg and Holten to declare their In
dependence In March, l849 and led TO the between
I them and Denmark the former being actively sup
ported by Prussia and the German liberals, the lat
ter passiyely encouraged by the whole of Europe,
who would not desert the ~ Eat AH moi principle
M 1851 the dispute djusted by the interve-
PIN of the great powers, and the personal authority
the King restored on condition that he would respect
the rights Of the German States, to which his Majesty
scAted. In January, 1852, the Danish government
representative assemblies to be convened for the
ranxcmcnt of the affairs Of the phos monarchy including
the puces Notwithstanding the circumstances OF the
local paraens Of the latter the common constitution
UyessnrM Vsrassuny) was promulgated In July 1854 by
which the political rights and local independence Of the
Ducbies merged in the general rights Of the whole
Stat Protests and circumstances have failed to turn
King Christian VIII from his purpose of annexation,
which he canddly avows. and excuses II only on the
oro,nH of his own personal convenience.
n ii somewhat curious to find Austria, which has ian
rrr Hungary In violation Of solemn compacs and has
Aated the old constitution Of St Stephen, assuming
the championship Of the preserptve rights Of the Duchies
again the consolidation scheme Of the Danish sovereign
derng the present state of Europe, and the known
sent penis Of the jury to which the will be ultimate
ly su Knitted shall be agrecaby disappointed II the
rights of the feeble little Duches allowed to
L. over the II am the State system, on which the