The Battle of Sankelmark (or Battle of Oeversee) was a minor battle during the
Second Schleswig War
The Second Schleswig War ( da, Krigen i 1864; german: Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War was the second military conflict over the Schleswig-Holstein Question of the nineteenth century. T ...
. It took place on 6 February 1864 between
Sankelmark
Sankelmark is a former municipality in Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. It is about 5 miles south of Flensburg. There was a battle there in the Second War of Schleswig (1864). On March 1, 2008 Sankelmark was incorporated into Oeversee.
External lin ...
and
Oeversee
Oeversee ( da, Oversø) is a municipality in the district of Schleswig-Flensburg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated approximately 10 km south of Flensburg. The Oeversee municipality was merged with Sankelmark on March 1, 2008. Th ...
, on the road between
Schleswig
The Duchy of Schleswig ( da, Hertugdømmet Slesvig; german: Herzogtum Schleswig; nds, Hartogdom Sleswig; frr, Härtochduum Slaswik) was a duchy in Southern Jutland () covering the area between about 60 km (35 miles) north and 70 km ...
and
Flensburg
Flensburg (; Danish, Low Saxon: ''Flensborg''; North Frisian: ''Flansborj''; South Jutlandic: ''Flensborre'') is an independent town (''kreisfreie Stadt'') in the north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg is the centre of the ...
, during the Danish retreat from
Dannevirke
Dannevirke ( "Earthworks (archaeology), work of the Danes", a reference to Danevirke; mi, Taniwaka, lit= or ''Tāmaki-nui-a-Rua'', the area where the town is), is a rural service town in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New ...
.
Background
The Danish army, under General
Christian Julius De Meza
Christian Julius de Meza (14 January 1792 – 16 September 1865) was the commander of the Royal Danish Army, Danish Army during the 1864 Second Schleswig War. De Meza was responsible for the withdrawal of the Danish army from the Danevirke, an eve ...
had taken up position at the defenses of Dannevirke and had managed to hold the Prussians at bay at the
Battle of Mysunde on the 2 February. However, two days later, the Prussians managed to cross the
Schlei
The Schlei (; da, Slien, also ''Slesvig Fjord''e.g. in: Adolph Frederik Bergsøe: ''Den danske stats statistik'', Kjøbenhavn 1844, p. 156) (more often referred to in English as the Sly Firth) is a narrow inlet of the Baltic Sea in Schleswig-H ...
, threatening the Danes with encirclement. With the lack of heavy artillery and judging that the Dannevirke fortifications were insufficient for a successful defense, De Meza decided the position was untenable and ordered a withdrawal to preserve the army intact and prevent encirclement. The withdrawal of the Danish Army to Dybbøl began on the 4 February. The Danish troops withdrew through the freezing weather. Austrian troops were dispatched in pursuit and in response, the 7th Brigade of the Danish army was ordered to stop the Austrians. Austrian troops reached the Danish rearguard near Sankelmark in the afternoon of the 6 February.
Battle
![Episoden af Træfning ved Sankelmark, den 6](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Episoden_af_Tr%C3%A6fning_ved_Sankelmark%2C_den_6._Februar.jpg)
The Danish 7th Brigade consisting of the 1st Regiment, made up of soldiers from
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
and the 11th Regiment, made up of soldiers from
Vendsyssel
Vendsyssel () is the northernmost traditional district of Denmark and of Jutland. Being divided from mainland Jutland by the Limfjord, it is technically a part of the North Jutlandic Island, but the name often used informally for the entire island. ...
was commanded by
Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
Max Müller and had taken up positions on both sides of the road. Around 3:30pm, the battle commenced when Colonel Max Müller ordered the 1st Regiment to attack. The Danish troops launched a fierce bayonet charge and despite the numerical advantage of the Austrian troops, the Danish troops managed to halt the Austrians. Fierce fighting, including hand-to-hand combat, followed and lasted for hours without either side gaining the decisive upper hand, until an Austrian bayonet charge finally forced the Danes to retreat. The battle ended around 5:00pm, when the sun began to set. The 7th Brigade then withdrew and linked up with the rest of the Danish army. However, they came under Austrian artillery fire and suffered considerable losses.
According to the Danes, 210 Danes and 406 Austrians were killed or wounded during the battle. According to the Austrians, however, the Danes lost 962 men and the Austrians only 431.
Aftermath
With this successful rearguard action by the 7th Brigade, the
Danish army
The Royal Danish Army ( da, Hæren, fo, Herurin, kl, Sakkutuut) is the land-based branch of the Danish Defence, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structures ...
reached the safety of the redoubts at Dybbøl. Despite heavy losses, the Danish soldiers had performed well and the Austrian pursuers were halted. The successful withdrawal of the Danish army was, however, met with anger and disbelief from the Danish public and politicians.
Following the victory in the
First Schleswig War
The First Schleswig War (german: Schleswig-Holsteinischer Krieg) was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig-Holstein Question, contesting the issue of who should control the Duchies of Schleswig, ...
, a sense of military superiority had spread in
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
and
Danevirke
The Danevirke or Danework (modern Danish spelling: ''Dannevirke''; in Old Norse; ''Danavirki'', in German; ''Danewerk'', literally meaning '' earthwork of the Danes'') is a system of Danish fortifications in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. This his ...
, considered the historical border between Denmark and the German states, was considered a sacred national symbol and a formidable defensive line.
In reality the fortifications of Dannevirke were not sufficient for a successful defense. Only the army recognised this, while politicians and the public demanded a defense of this national symbol. Few considered and acknowledged that
De Meza had actually saved the army from eventual certain destruction by withdrawing and that the army had successfully withdrawn without significant casualties.
De Meza was eventually sacked by the Minister of War and the Danish army lost one of its most capable and resourceful officers at a critical stage of the war. The perceived loss of face also meant that a later withdrawal from defences at Dybbøl was almost impossible due to public and political pressure. This became a factor in the later Danish defeat at the
Battle of Dybbøl.
Literature
* J. Ganschow, O. Haselhorst, M. Ohnezeit: ''Der Deutsch-Dänische Krieg 1864. Vorgeschichte - Verlauf - Folgen''. Graz 2013.
* J. Christensen (u. a.): ''1864. Fra helstat til nationalstat.'' Fårevejle 1998.
* M. Embree: ''Bismarck’s first war. The campaign of Schleswig and Jutland 1864.'' Solihull 2007.
External links
Rømningen af Dannevirke (Danish)Slaget ved Sankelmark (Schlacht bei Sankelmark) auf graenseforeningen.dk (Danish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sankelmark
Conflicts in 1864
Battles involving Denmark
Battles involving Austria
Battles of the Second Schleswig War
Battle of Sankelmark
The Battle of Sankelmark (or Battle of Oeversee) was a minor battle during the Second Schleswig War. It took place on 6 February 1864 between Sankelmark and Oeversee, on the road between Schleswig and Flensburg, during the Danish retreat from Da ...
Battle of Sankelmark
The Battle of Sankelmark (or Battle of Oeversee) was a minor battle during the Second Schleswig War. It took place on 6 February 1864 between Sankelmark and Oeversee, on the road between Schleswig and Flensburg, during the Danish retreat from Da ...