Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/849

 AUMY AND NAVY

493

The interest of the debt for 1897-98 was set down as 7,300,148 kroner; after deducting productive investments, &c., the charge per head of population would be about 2s. 8d. The investments of the State on March 31, 1898, including the reserve fund, but excluding the State railways (valued at 218,021,694 kroner) and the domains amounted to 73,164,075 kroner.

Defence.

The army of Denmark consists of all the able-bodied young men of the kingdom who have reached the age of 22 years. They are liable to service for eight years in the regular army and its reserve, constituting the first line, and for eight years subsequent in the extra reserve. The drilling is divided into two periods : the iirst lasts six months for the infantry ; three months for the Held artillery and the engineers ; eight months for the cavalry ; and four months for the siege artillery and the technic corps. The second period of drill, which is for only a portion of the recruits of each branch of arms, notably those who have profited the least by the first course, lasts eight months for the infantry, eleven months for the cavalry, and one year for the artillery and the engineers. Besides, every corps has to drill each year during twenty-five to thirty days. The kingdom is divided into two divisions or commands, the eastern and the western, the former subdivided into two and the latter into three brigades, and each brigade into two regi- ments of three battalions. Every brigade furnishes the contingent of a brigade of infantry and one regiment of cavalry.

The forces of the kingdom comprise 31 battalions of infantry of the line with 11 of reserve ; 5 regiments of cavalry, each with 3 squadrons active and a depot ; 2 regiments of field artillery, in 12 batteries, and 4 of reserve, and 1 regiment of 3 battalions with 12 companies of fortress artillery, and 6 companies of reserve ; and 1 regiment of engineers. The strength of the army (1899) is 800 officers and 9,000 men ; the war strength is 1,350 officers and 58,600 men. The total war strength of Citizen Corps of Copenhagen and Bornholm Island is about 4,700 men.

The Danish fleet is maintained for purposes of coast-defence. It com- prises 4 coast-defence armourclads (named in italics below) : the turret-ship Helgoland ; the barbette ship, Iver Hvitfcldt ; the torpedo ship, Tordenskjold ; 6 third-class cruisers and gun vessels, 7 gunboats, and a flotilla of 14 first-class and 20 second-class torpedo boats. The following are the armoured vessels of the fleet. Those in italics are purely for coast defence class ; b. broadside, c. b. central battery, t. turret, bar. barbette, Q.F. quick- firing.

§

rs

■

oj «> C

o w

p.

■§ Name

S

1

1868

p. c: to s

Q 2,100

Extrem

thicknes

Armour i

Inches

Armament

•SI

Si E 1 c

t Lindormen

5

2 13-ton ; 4 3in.

—

1,500

120

t ; Oorm

1870

2,400

1

2 18-ton ; 4 2iin. Q.F.

—

1,G70

12*2

e.bJ Odin

1872

3,230

8

4 18-ton ; 4 3Jin. Q.F.

—

2,300

12-4

t Helgoland

1878

5,370

12

/136-tou; 4 22-ton; 4 5in. ; 1 2 24in. Q.F.

4

4,000

13-4

bar Tordenskjold.

1880

2,530

8

1 52-ton ; 4 Sin.

4

2,600

13-2 15-6 13 "0

bar Iver Hvitfeldt.

1886

3.450

lU

2 28-ton i 4 5in. ; 2 2iin.Q.F.

4

5,100

t Skjold.

1896 2,160

9

1 26.ton ; 3 4iin. Q.F.

— •z,mv