When Christian VIII. succeeded his father Frederick VII. in 1839 the elder male line of the house of Oldenburg was on the point of extinction, the king's only son and heir having no chil dren. To German opinion the solution of the question of the succession seemed clear enough. The Crown of Denmark could be inherited by female heirs; in the duchies the Salic law had never been repealed and, in the event of a failure of male heirs to Christian VIII., the succession would pass to the dukes of Augustenburg. Danish opinion, on the other hand, clamoured for a royal pronouncement proclaiming the principle of the in divisibility of the monarchy and its transmission intact to a single heir, in accordance with the royal law. To this Christian VIII. yielded so far as to issue in 1846 letters patent declaring that the royal law in the matter of the succession was in full force so far as Schleswig was concerned. As to Holstein he stated that he could not give so clear a decision, but the principle of the independence of Schleswig and of its union with Holstein were expressly reaffirmed. An appeal against this by the estates of Holstein to the German diet received no attention. The revolu tionary year 1848 brought matters to a head. On Jan. 28, Chris tian VIII. proclaimed a new constitution which, while preserving the autonomy of the different parts of the country, incorporated them for common purposes in a single organization. The estates of the duchies replied by demanding the incorporation of Schles wig-Holstein, as a single constitutional state, in the German Con federation. Frederick VII., who had succeeded his father at the end of January, declared (March 4) that he had no right to deal in this way with Schleswig, and, yielding to the Eider-Danish party, withdrew the rescript of January (April 4) and announced to the people of Schleswig (March 27) the promulgation of a liberal constitution under which the duchy, while preserving its local autonomy, would become an integral part of Denmark.
Meanwhile the duchies had broken out into insurrection; a provisional Government had been estab lished at Kiel; and the duke of Augustenburg had hurried to Berlin to secure the assistance of Prussia in asserting his rights. This was at the very crisis of the revolution in Berlin, and the Prussian Government saw in the proposed intervention in Den mark in a popular cause an excellent opportunity for restoring its damaged prestige. Prussian troops were accordingly marched into Holstein and, the diet having on April 12 recognized the provisional Government of Schleswig and commissioned Prussia to enforce its decrees, General Wrangel was ordered to occupy Schleswig also. Prussia, as the mandatory of Germany, en deavoured to enforce the principle that the states were inde pendent, indissolubly united and hereditary only in the male line. But the Germans had reckoned without the European powers, which were united in opposing any dismemberment of Denmark, even Austria refusing to assist in enforcing the German view.
Malmoe.—Prussia was now confronted on the one side by the German nation urging her to action, on the other side by the European powers threatening the worst conse quences should she persist. Frederick William chose the lesser of two evils and, on Aug. 26, 1848, Prussia signed at Malmoe
a convention which yielded practically all the Danish demands. The Holstein estates appealed to the German parliament, but it was soon clear that this had no means of enforcing its views, and the convention was ratified at Frankfort.
The convention was only in the nature of a truce establishing a temporary modus vivendi, and the main issues continued to be hotly debated. A conference held in London failed to arrive at a settlement, and on April 3, 1849, the war was renewed. But the European situation, and notably the attitude of the Emperor Nicholas I. of Russia—who looked on Augustenburg as a rebel and Russia as bound in honour to safeguard the interests of the Danish Crown—decided Prussia to conclude peace with Den mark on the basis of the status quo ante bellum.
The treaty was signed at Berlin on July 2, 185o. Both parties reserved all their antecedent rights ; but for Denmark it was enough, since it empowered the king duke to restore his authority in Holstein with or without the consent of the German Confederation. Danish troops marched in to coerce the duchies; but, meanwhile, negotiations among the powers continued, and on Aug. 2, 185o, Great Britain, France, Russia and Norway-Sweden signed a protocol, to which Austria subsequently adhered, approving the principle of restoring the integrity of the Danish monarchy. On Jan. 28, 1852, King Fred erick VII. issued a royal letter announcing the institution of a unitary State which, while maintaining the fundamental con stitution of Denmark, would increase the powers of the estates of the two duchies. This was approved by Prussia and Austria, and by the German federal diet in so far as it affected Holstein and Lauenburg.
question of the suc cession was next approached. The main obstacle to an agree ment among the Powers was removed when, on March 31, 1852, the duke of Augustenburg resigned his claim in return for a money payment. Further adjustments followed. After the re nunciation by the emperor of Russia (who represented the elder, Gottorp line) and others of their eventual rights, Charlotte, landgravine of Hesse, sister of Christian VIII., and her son Prince Frederick transferred their rights to the latter's sister Louise, who in her turn transferred them to her husband Prince Christian of Gliicksburg. This arrangement received international sanction by the protocol signed in London on May 8, 1852, by the five great powers and Norway and Sweden. On July 31, 1853, King Frederick VII. gave his assent to a law settling the crown on Prince Christian, "prince of Denmark," and his heirs male. The protocol of London, while consecrating the principle of the integrity of Denmark, stipulated that the rights of the German Confederation in Holstein and Lauenburg should remain unaf fected. It was, in fact, a compromise which satisfied neither the Danes nor the Germans; and when in Oct. 1855, King Frederick issued a parliamentary constitution for the whole monarchy, its legality was disputed by the two German great powers, on the ground that the estates of the duchies had not been consulted, and the diet of the Confederation refused to admit its validity so far as Holstein and Lauenburg were concerned (Feb. II, 1858).