During our recent visit to Tøjhusmuseet (the Royal Danish Arsenal Museum) I bought two English language editions of books about to war fought during by the Danes during the nineteenth century; the Schleswig-Holstein Revolt and the Second Schleswig War.
The first is THE SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN REVOLT 1848 - 1850 which was written by Johs. Nielsen and published by Tøjhusmuseet in 1993 (ISBN 87 89022 11 4).
This 56-page book is lavishly illustrated and describes the background to the revolt, the main events of the war, and its consequences. It only cost Kr.50 (about £5.00) and I would have paid that just for the colour uniform plates in the centre of the book.
The second book is THE SECOND SCHLESWIG WAR 1864: PRELUDE, EVENTS AND CONSEQUENCES and was written by Inge Adriansen and Jens Ole Christensen. It was also published by Tøjhusmuseet in 2013 (ISBN 978 8787 37527 6).
As its title suggests, it carries the story told in the first book forward until the outbreak of the war in 1864 and then describes the main events of the conflict. It also has chapters about the war's impact upon Danish art and poetry as well the memorials to the fallen and the myths that surround its outcome.
As the BBC has bought the rights to broadcast the Danish TV drama series entitled '1864', I suspect that this book might be a very useful source of background information to any potential viewers.
The first is THE SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN REVOLT 1848 - 1850 which was written by Johs. Nielsen and published by Tøjhusmuseet in 1993 (ISBN 87 89022 11 4).
This 56-page book is lavishly illustrated and describes the background to the revolt, the main events of the war, and its consequences. It only cost Kr.50 (about £5.00) and I would have paid that just for the colour uniform plates in the centre of the book.
The second book is THE SECOND SCHLESWIG WAR 1864: PRELUDE, EVENTS AND CONSEQUENCES and was written by Inge Adriansen and Jens Ole Christensen. It was also published by Tøjhusmuseet in 2013 (ISBN 978 8787 37527 6).
As its title suggests, it carries the story told in the first book forward until the outbreak of the war in 1864 and then describes the main events of the conflict. It also has chapters about the war's impact upon Danish art and poetry as well the memorials to the fallen and the myths that surround its outcome.
As the BBC has bought the rights to broadcast the Danish TV drama series entitled '1864', I suspect that this book might be a very useful source of background information to any potential viewers.
A good find!
ReplyDeleteRoss Mac,
ReplyDeleteJust the sort of books that you would have bought yourself I am sure.
All the best,
Bob
Can't wait for the tv sersis the tailer looks great.
ReplyDeleteGood purchases- I own the first.
Bob,
ReplyDeleteA splendid find, indeed. My favourite is the chap who looks like a classic toy soldier - I might well use the plate for one of my ImagiNations.
Best wishes,
Arthur
You got a good buy on those books. I looked up the first book. Here in the States that book goes for close to $40! The second book is available in PDF form online, which I will be looking at in the coming days.
ReplyDeleteTradgardmastare,
ReplyDeleteOf all the people I know, you are the one I expected would own one or both of these book!
I can hardly wait to see the 1864 TV series ... and I fully expect to see wargames based upon it at shows later in 2015.
All the best,
Bob
Arthur1815,
ReplyDeleteThe Danish infantry uniform (red coat, light blue trousers) is a classic ... and the one used as the basis of the toy soldier illustrations in the book of Hans Christian Anderson stories. It would make an ideal imagi-nation uniform.
All the best,
Bob
Jhnptrqn,
ReplyDelete$40 is a bit steep for such a slim book! Would it be cheaper to buy it direct from the museum?
The second book is well written and very informative, but I think that the first book is my favourite of the two because of its illustrations.
All the best,
Bob
Good stuff; the 2nd Schleswig HJolstein War was more or less responsible for my being American instead of Danish! It convinced my Great Grandfather to emigrate to the US a few years aftyer fighting i same, to get his family out of the way of the further European wars wars he (correctly) saw coming!
ReplyDeleteGonsalvo,
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting bit of family history! Your great grandfather was a lot more astute that some of the political leaders of the day ... but then again, the modern politicos don't strike me as having a lot of foresight either.
These two wars have struck me as being real wargamer's wars. Relatively small-scale, nice, colourful uniforms, a mixture of types of battle, and a combination of land and sea warfare. Maps of the area are readily available and the terrain is not too difficult to reproduce on the tabletop.
What's not to like?
All the best,
Bob
WOW! What a great score, Bob! :-D
ReplyDeleteThe Dancing Tea Cake,
ReplyDeleteThey were a steal! Two excellent slim volumes with lots of useful maps and illustrations ... and the colour plates alone were worth the money.
All the best,
Bob
I've been looking for some info on uniforms for this period to go with a planned purchase from Pendraken Miniatures. This book looks perfect and based on your review I've just ordered it direct from the museum for about £10.00 inc P&P. Can't wait for it to arrive so I can plan my forces to pick up at Salute.
ReplyDeleteSteve J.,
ReplyDeleteI am very pleased that you found my book review helpful, and I hope that your project goes well.
All the best,
Bob