Thus Ditmarsian merchants, along with those from Teutonic Prussia, were the only beneficiaries of a quasi membership within the Hanse, although lacking the background of citizenship in an autonomous or free city. It was not until 1559 and the Last Feud between the King of Denmark and the Ditmarsians that the free peasants were forced to give up their political and religious autonomy by the successful invasion commanded by Count Johan Rantzau from Steinburg, one of the best strategists of the time. Since then the coat of arms of Dithmarschen has shown a warrior on horseback, representing a knight of Rantzau. This knight has later been identified with Saint George, then considered to be the patron of Dithmarschen. The conquerors – King Frederick II, Duke Adolf, and Duke John II the Elder – divided Dithmarschen into two parts: the south became a part of Holstein in personal union with Denmark while the north came into the possession of the other Duke of Holstein. From 1773 all of Holstein was united in personal union with Denmark and remained so until 1864, when, following the Second Schleswig War, the Duchies of Holstein and of Schleswig became an occupied territory of the German Confederation. Two years later, following the Austro-Prussian War, Dithmarschen became part of the Kingdom of Prussia, which annexed Holstein and Schleswig making them subsequently the Province of Schleswig-Holstein. The Middle Ages in Dithmarschen are held to have continued into the 19th century, when the Kiel Canal was completed, fens began to be drained, and agricultural reforms took place. Within the Bundesland Schleswig-Holstein, the area remained divided into the districts of "Norderdithmarschen" (Northern Ditmarsh) and "Süderdithmarschen" (Southern Ditmarsh) before they were united in 1970 as the district of Dithmarschen. The people of Dithmarschen have displayed great pride in their history. In recent decades many traditions have been revitalized and new events in a traditional fashion have been created. (It may be hard to distinguish activities inspired by tradition and activities fostering tourism in the region.) High German is by now the dominant language but Low German in its Holsteinisch version still has a place in informal conversation. Until the 1960s Low German was the prevailing language of everyday communication.