Carl Frederick Sørensen

The Corvette Valkyrien was built in 1846 and saw action at the Battle of Heligoland on 14th June 1849.  The Danish Navy had been blockading German trade in the Northern and Baltic seas since 1848.  Germany was without a navy so a fledgling fleet, the Reichsflotte, was formed in reponse to this threat.  They sailed on the 4th June under the command of Admiral Karl Rudolf Brommy, whose flagship Barbarossa was formerly RMS Britannia.  Realising they were outnumbered, the few Danish ships including the Valkyrien, under Captain Andreas Polder, retreated to the coast of Heligoland, at that time part of the British Empire.  Although neutral, the Royal Navy had made it clear that German vessels were not welcome.  Broadsides were exchanged between the Danish and Germans to little effect.  The German vessels soon approached the three mile zone, a move which prompted the British ships to fire warning shots.  Not wishing to draw the Royal Navy into the fight and fearing the arrival of the main Danish Fleet, Brommy retreated and was pursued to the mouth of the Elba where the blockade was resumed.