The conflict that began in 1848, in the shadow of the Revolutions of 1848, initiated a long and bloody path to unify Germany and all that went in its path. The self-determination of ethnic minorities within the great nation-states and empires demonstrated the crack in the old order of Europe. In Denmark. It constituted a major historical event in the national culture of Denmark. In Germany the loose and diverse duchies and principalities began to forge the German nation. Denmark controlled the seas adopting the new technology of steam in its modern navy but the German governments recognized the need to acquire steam-powered vessels and to challenge their opponents on an even footing. From the first naval combat between steam warships to the use of electric sea mines, the first Schleswig War was one of the birthplaces of the new technological 19th century.