Schleswig-Holstein State Debt (1848-1852)

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The Schleswig-Holstein national debts from 1848 to 1851 were mainly used to finance the Schleswig-Holstein War . The government bonds were declared extinct by Denmark in 1852 .

Origin of Debt

The Schleswig-Holstein uprising led to the formation of the Provisional Government on March 22, 1848 . The local authorities in the Duchy of Schleswig and Duchy of Holstein recognized the authority of this government, so that the government could dispose of the tax income in the duchies. However , these financial resources were insufficient to build up the Schleswig-Holstein army and wage the war against Denmark. The Provisional Government therefore introduced a war tax that was to be offset against income taxes to be paid later.

Due to the Malmö Armistice Agreement , the Provisional Government had to resign and a government set up jointly by Prussia and Denmark was formed. This joint government was in office from October 23, 1848 to March 27, 1849. The end of the joint government was the result of Denmark's cancellation of the armistice agreement the day before.

On March 27, 1849, the governor appointed by the provisional central authority took over the affairs of state in Holstein. In contrast to the Duchy of Schleswig, the Duchy of Holstein was part of the German Confederation .

The war was now continuing. To finance this, a forced loan was issued in 1849 and 1850 . In addition, in 1850 the government took out a voluntary loan at home and another abroad. A second forced loan followed in 1850.

Another source of funding was the Schleswig-Holstein cash register, i.e. the paper money issued by the short-lived state from July 31, 1848 .

After the collapse of the survey

After the victory in the Battle of Idstedt on July 24th and 25th, 1850, Denmark gained full control of the Duchy of Schleswig. The Schleswig-Holstein army was disbanded on April 1, 1851, and Denmark also regained control of the Duchy of Holstein.

First of all, the Schleswig-Holstein receipts continued to be used as legal tender. The Danish authorities also served the compulsory loans until early 1852.

By ordinance of June 7th, 1852, the Danish king declared that he did not want to recognize the bonds and would no longer make any payments on them. In the Duchy of Schleswig, the receipts were also declared invalid. In the Duchy of Holstein these should initially continue to apply until a decision by the Holstein Assembly of Estates .

The fall of the independent state of Schleswig-Holstein was followed by national bankruptcy .

literature

  • Jan Schlürmann : The Schleswig-Holstein Army 1848-1851 , Tönning 2004, pp. 324–332.
  • Lorenz von Stein : Legal opinion on the continued validity of the Schleswig-Holstein State Papers and the patent dated June 7, regarding the cancellation of this validity . Grimma and Leipzig 1852 ( online )