Danish Unitary State
The Danish Unitary State was a Danish political designation for the monarchical state formation of Denmark, Schleswig, Holstein, and Saxe-Lauenburg, between the two treaties of Vienna in 1815 and 1864. The usage of the term became relevant after the First Schleswig War, when a need for a constitutional framework for the monarchy was present, which ought to follow the premises of the London Protocol, which prohibited a closer connection between two of the monarchy's possessions. The political designation was ultimately eliminated after The Second Schleswig War and was replaced by the national state in 1866.
Definitions and meaning
The Danish term Helstaten refers to two historical state formations of Denmark. One being the twin realms of Denmark–Norway, and the other is the personal and for a short time real union between Denmark and the North German duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg.Definition
There are various of different definitions of the word Helstat. Helstat is a compound word, combined from Hel and stat, compound to 'Whole-state'. According to Salmonsens, a Helstat is:It is also noted that the term is mainly used in connection with Denmark and the Duchies and the Austrian Realm's Constitution Another definition by the Danish Lexicon of Ordbog over det danske sprog States as follows:
Similar definitions are giving by Illustreret dansk konversationslektion and Norsk Riksmålsordbok.
Despite small disagreements, the definitions agree on certain points.
- A Helstat is a state formation consisting of more than one political entity
- They share some political aspects
- Yet the political entities have an extensive autonomy
Historic usage in reference to Denmark and Norway
The first mention of the word Helstat in a historical context, is from 1885, in the book Danmark-Norges indre Historie 1660- 1720, by Edward Holm referring to the union between the two nations of Denmark and Norway, as a direct whole state.' Other Danish works mentioning the word in reference to Denmark-Norway include; Danmark-Norge i det 18. Aarhundrede, by Albert Olsen', Dansk-Norsk Veksel virkning i det 18. Aarhundred, by Hans Jensen' and Mellem brødre, by Vilhelm la Cour.'Olsen, like Holm, describes the Helstat as an opposition to the expression of special interests, yet Olsen does not argue why he chose to call Denmark-Norway a Helstat. Moreover, Olsen sees the Helstat as the complete opposite of the Nationalstaten and thereby also equalizes a Multinational state with a Helstat.
Jensen's book on Denmark-Norway seems to be the only one referring to the Helstat, as that of Denmark and the Duchies.' He defines the goal of the Helstat as being to achieve the biggest possible commonwealth and entity.' He thereby also devalues the Helstat with Denmark and the Duchies characterizing it as incomplete,' and instead highlights the union with Norway as the complete version of a Helstat. Although Jensen has no source for the definition he uses.'
La Cour, defines the Helstat as an act of Absolute monarchy and unity, in contrast to the other definitions. Such a definition is shared by Ole Feldbæk, who in his book Danmark-Norge 1380-1814, describes the Helstat in a contrast to Norwegian independence and autonomy.
Historic usage in reference to Denmark and the duchies
There are also problems with the argumentation of the historians describing and defining the unitarystate between Denmark and the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg.
According to Claus Bjørn the term Helstaten only became politically relevant after the Three Years War and links the term with the period between 1848 and 1863.' He also notes that the traditional usage of the word for historians can be traced back to 1773 in the Treaty of Tsarskoye Selo.'
The reason being that Christian VII of Denmark got full control of Ducal Holstein after Tsarskoye Selo.
During the aftermath of the First Schleswig War the usage of the word became politically relevant in terms of creating a united constitution for both Denmark and the Duchies. The term is mentioned in a Danish state council protocol from a reference on the 21 December 1850, from a dairy of Christian Dahl from 1848 to 1849 and especially from letters from Danish politicians, such as Ditlev Gothard Monrad and Andreas Frederik Krieger in the 1830s and 1840s.
There is no exact date accepted for the first usage of the political word of Helstaten, although just as Bjørn argues, Christian Molbech states that the term originated in 1848. Nevertheless, the usage of the term saw an increase, especially politically, during the negotiations of a constitution to the Danish realm.''''
Political ideology
The idea of preserving the Helstat is called Helstatspatriotisme, its ideology is focused on valuing and preserving the Danish-led Oldenburg Monarchy and to stop the spread of Nationalism in the possessions of the dynasty. Nationalism had been rising since the French revolution and was a founding part of social changes in the Danish realm during the 19th century. The old state formation, made by royal houses and feudalism, was challenged by nationalism and liberalism, and the Helstatspatriotisme were in a position to preserve the old state formation of the Oldenburg monarchy. The Oldenburg state is said to be Dano-German from the beginning. Especially during the 17th and 18th centuries when German language and culture began to influence the Danish nobility, whose majority had German as their first language.Before the waiver of Norway, 25% of Denmark, spoke German, that number rose to 40% during the aftermath of the Treaty of Kiel. In the capital of Copenhagen, 20% spoke German, and in other cities like Odense, Fredericia, and Elsinore, there was a notable German-speaking population. The separation of Danish and German in Denmark and Schleswig should therefore not be seen as necessary for the creation of a national state.
This rise of the German culture in Denmark led to several unrests and clashes between the Danes and Germans, like the Royal Guards Mutiny in 1771 as a response to the alleged Germanisation of Denmark by Struensee, and the German Feud which sought to disestablish German occupation of important political and cultural jobs.
Ideology in early use
After the reforms by Struensee, the power of government was succeeded by Ove Høegh-Guldberg, who reformed the state into a more Danish-centered one rather than German-centered. Laws like the Danish Citizenship Act of 1776 under which access to public positions in the kingdom of Denmark became the prerogative of native-born subjects and those who were considered their equals. Danish also became the official language of The Danish military, and Politicians and administrators should also use Danish instead of German. The takeover and reforms by Høegh-Guldberg were done in a matter, where he legitimized his rule by representing the Danish people and may also appear to be an early form of Danish nationalism and Helstatspatriotisme. During his rule and beyond, Helstatspatriotismen was prioritized by symbolically uniting Denmark, Norway, and Holstein as three equal parts under the Oldenburg Dynasty' in art and literature.' By that the Danish government wished to establish loyalty to the monarch throughout the whole realm.''''Danification attempts in Holstein (1806-1813)
After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, Crown Prince Frederick annexed, in accordance with the French, Holstein into the Danish state. The act was official policy since the Treaty of Tsarskoye Selo and can be seen as an act for Helstatspatriotismen. The period between 1806 and 1813 saw increasing Danification of the area. The Danish language was sought to be implemented in offices and churches, yet even if the intention was to quell Holsteinian regionalism, it did the exact opposite and the annexation attempt was denounced in 1813. Modern historian, Steen Bo Frandsen, argues that if the annexation attempt had not been implemented, then there would still be Holsteinians who wished for further integration into the Danish state long after 1814. It is also argued that before nationalist sentiment began to rise, the major view in Holstein was that the connection to the Oldenburg monarch was a positive thing.Napoleonic Wars
During the Napoleonic Wars Denmark came through a series of national disasters. Firstly Denmark-Norway lost its fleet during the English Wars, which greatly damaged Dano-Norwegian trade commerce and connection between the Atlantic territories', Norway and Denmark. Secondly Denmark faced the Danish state bankruptcy of 1813 which saw the total collapse of the financial industry and trade industry. Lastly, Denmark was forced on Napoleon's side and after a short war with Sweden and occupation of Schleswig and Holstein signed for peace at Kiel in 1814. This saw the loss of Norway, and a dream of a trio with Denmark, Norway, and Holstein demolished. Frederick VI who was a natural supporter of the Helstatspatriotisme, had earlier declined an offer from tzar Alexander I of Russia, which in turn for handing over Norway, Denmark would get the Hanseatic cities, the North German East Coast, and even Holland Which shows Frederick's realization of the importance of Norway, for the Helstat.Likewise, under the Napoleonic wars, the lands north of the Elbe did not show any unwillingness or dissatisfaction with the French presence in Germany.' This view was not shared with the rest of the German states.'
There was a short German national excitement during the German campaign of 1813, yet that excitement was gone with the creation of the German Confederation, which did not turn out as the German national liberals hoped for.' Although during the rise of German Nationalism in the mid-19th century, the Holsteinians became embarrassed with the Oldenburg monarch's decision to join forces with Napoleon, and the Holsteinian nationalists portrayed themselves as victims, who were prevented from fighting with their German brothers. This, along with the Danification attempt of Holstein, made the Holsteinian elite look more to the south.
The Napoleonic wars were costly for Denmark and destabilized the build-up of Helstatspatriotisme. The German-speaking minority went from 25% to 40% after 1815, which meant that Germans were now, not just a small minority in a bigger and more multicultural realm, but a notable minority and rival to the Danish-speaking population, which led to the Schleswig–Holstein question.