Seems like PJ used to post ~10 of these a day when he was active, so I figured I'd throw my hamster in the ring. 🙂
The First Schleswig War or Schleswig-Holstein uprising and the Three Years' War (Danish: Treårskrigen), was a military conflict in S. Denmark and N. Germany rooted in the Schleswig–Holstein question: who should control the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg, which at the time were ruled by the king of Denmark in a personal union. Ultimately, Denmark proved victorious with the diplomatic support of the great powers, especially Britain and Russia, since the duchies were close to an important Baltic seaway connecting both powers.
NOTE: there's a higher-quality 4298x3165 image at the link above.
Also fun to look at the assorted art here:
https://www.google.com/search?q=%22First+Schleswig+War%22&udm=2
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/edVfP9XeOaI/maxresdefault.jpg
Finally, some comments via the EE:
It's exactly the kind of national romantic naïveté expressed by this painting that got Denmark into the Second Schleswig War, which was a disaster.
Lord Palmerston (British PM) apparently said "Only three people have ever really understood the Schleswig-Holstein business – the Prince Consort, who is dead – a German professor, who has gone mad – and I, who have forgotten all about it."
XD
Quick TL;DR of the Schleswig-Holstein Question?
So we have two duchies, Schleswig and Holstein. They are right next to each other and ruled by the same Duke, who also is the King of Denmark. Holstein is fully German, was part of the HRE and then the German Confederation. Schleswig has been Danish since the Viking Age but has a growing German population and is governed autonomous from Denmark. In the past Danish Kings signed treaties that the two duchies would remain forever undivided. In 1848 the Danish King tried to integrate Schleswig into Denmark proper. The Germans living there revolt and Holstein joins in.
Small correction. It was not the King's decision to integrate Schleswig. It was due to Denmark becoming a democracy and wanting to be a national state. The people in Schleswig did not want to be a part of the Danish national state and they did not want to be a minority inside a democracy. In fact in the beginning of the revolt, they thought that the king had been overthrown and they were prepared to fight as royalists(!)
As for the 'EE,' there are a few more interesting comments if you wish, but please put on your hazardous protective wear if one intends to visit them:
