The Battle of Dybbøl, 1864. Prussian soldiers take over an advanced outpost in the south of Denmark. The conflict concerns control of the Duchy of Schleswig, which was recently annexed by Denmark, causing concern among its predominantly German-speaking inhabitants. Danish soldiers attempt to defend but are overwhelmed by the might of the Prussian attack.

Although this conflict holds no strategic significance, it foreshadows the same forces that, fifty years later, would tear Europe apart. Prussia's victory would not only revive its burgeoning militarism but also help it claim leadership of the new German Empire.

Rich in detail through first-hand accounts, Tom Buk-Swienty's work on the Schleswig conflict tells the story of this decisive war. The year 1864 shows how a small regional conflict foreshadowed the course of diplomacy that led to World War I and fiercely prepared the future of industrial warfare. But primarily, through human details, from touching letters between spouses to heart-wrenching individual stories of loss, 1864 is a gripping, epic human drama that shows the impact of wars on soldiers, families, and individual men and women who must live their realities.