Christian Julius de Meza (14 January 1792 – 16 September 1865) was the commander of the

Danish Army The Royal Danish Army (; ; ) is the land-based branch of the Danish Armed Forces, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structures, equipment and training method ...

during the 1864

Second Schleswig War The Second Schleswig War (; or German Danish War), 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. The war began on 1 Februar ...

. De Meza was responsible for the withdrawal of the Danish army from the

Danevirke The Danevirke or Danework (modern Danish language, Danish spelling: ''Dannevirke''; in Old Norse language, Old Norse: ''Danavirki'', in German language, German: ''Danewerk'', literally meaning ''Earthworks (archaeology), earthwork of the Danes'') ...

, an event which shocked the Danish public and resulted in the loss of his command.

Biography

Sephardic Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

descent, de Meza served honorably in the

First War of Schleswig The First Schleswig War (), also known as the Schleswig-Holstein uprising () and the Three Years' War (), was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig–Holstein question: who should control the Duc ...

and played an important role in securing the Danish victory in the 1850

Battle of Isted The Battle of Isted (; ) took place on 25 July 1850 near the village of Idstedt (Danish: ''Isted''), in what is today Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. The battle was part of the First Schleswig War. The Danes won the battle. The battle began early ...

—at its time, the largest battle in Scandinavian history. In 1864, de Meza was appointed supreme commander of the Danish forces. His objective was to defend the Danish border against a much greater combined Prusso-

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

army. But at the age of 72, de Meza was well past his prime and his task became even more difficult due to the conflict erupting during the winter season. De Meza estimated that his men were facing certain defeat and a pointless loss of life, and on the evening of 5 February 1864 telegraphed the War Ministry stating that the army since the day before had been preparing to withdraw to the position at

Dybbøl Dybbøl is a small town with a population of 2,357 (1 January 2024)Evacuation of Danevirke During the Second War of Schleswig, the fortifications of Danevirke were evacuated by the Danish army in 1864. This marked the last military use of the ancient defence structure of Danevirke, which has remained in German possession ever since. ...

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Meza, Christian 1792 births 1865 deaths Danish generals People of the First Schleswig War Danish military personnel of the Second Schleswig War People from Helsingør Danish Sephardi Jews Burials at the Garrison Cemetery, Copenhagen