Hitler's First Invasion: Austria's Unfortunate Fate

On March 12, 1938, German troops invaded Austria, marking the first step in Hitler's plan to wage aggressive wars against other countries. This event, known as the Anschluss, saw the annexation of Austria into the German Reich. The invasion was a premeditated act by Hitler, who had been cooperating with National Socialists in Austria to incorporate the country into the German Reich. The annexation was met with no armed resistance and was followed by a wave of street violence against Jewish people and property.

Hitler's arrival in Austria

On 12 March 1938, Hitler arrived in Austria, accompanied by German troops. The Austrian chancellor, Kurt von Schuschnigg, had resigned the previous day under pressure from Hitler, and the German army had crossed the border unopposed. Hitler's arrival marked the beginning of the annexation of Austria into the German Reich, known as the Anschluss.

Hitler's journey through Austria was a triumphal tour. He first crossed the border at his birthplace, Braunau am Inn, with a 4,000-man bodyguard. That evening, he arrived in Linz, where he received an enthusiastic welcome from a crowd of 250,000 Austrians.

Hitler's popularity reached unprecedented heights after he fulfilled the Anschluss. The unification of Austria and Germany had been a long-held desire for many Germans and Austrians, particularly those on the political left and centre. However, the referendum held to ratify the annexation was neither free nor fair. Opponents did not dare to vote against it, and the voting rights of around 360,000 people, mainly political enemies and those of Jewish or Romani origin, were abrogated.

The Berchtesgaden Agreement

Hitler's demands included the appointment of Nazi sympathisers to positions of power in the Austrian government. The key appointment was that of Arthur Seyss-Inquart as Minister of Public Security, with full, unlimited control of the police. In return, Hitler agreed to publicly reaffirm the 1936 treaty, which respected Austrian sovereignty.

The Austrian referendum

The Events Leading Up to the Referendum

On 9 March 1938, Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced a referendum to decide whether Austria wanted to be a part of Hitler's Germany. Hitler was enraged by this, as a vote against the unification would ruin his invasion plans. He ordered Schuschnigg to call off the referendum, threatening an invasion. Schuschnigg conceded, calling off the referendum and resigning.

The Referendum

The referendum ballot was not anonymous, and opponents of the unification did not dare to vote against. The ballot paper had "Yes" placed in the centre and in a much larger font than "No". Austrian citizens of Jewish or Roma heritage were not allowed to vote. The results showed that 99.7% of voters approved of German control of their country.

Reactions to the Referendum

Many historians have warned that the referendum results need to be taken with caution. The referendum was subject to large-scale Nazi propaganda, and the voting rights of around 360,000 people (8% of the eligible voting population) were abrogated. These were mainly political enemies, such as former members of left-wing parties, and Austrian citizens of Jewish or Romani origin. The secrecy of the ballot was non-existent, with many people marking the ballot paper in front of campaign workers.

The Aftermath

The referendum was "approved", and Austria was integrated as several administrative divisions into Nazi Germany. Austria remained part of Germany until the end of World War II, when a provisional Austrian government declared the unification null and void on 27 April 1945.

The Anschluss

The unification of Germany and Austria was a key part of the Nazi "Heim ins Reich" ("back home to the realm") concept, which sought to incorporate as many Volksdeutsche (ethnic Germans outside Germany) as possible into a "Greater Germany". After rising to power in 1933, Hitler and the Nazis began to cultivate pro-unification tendencies in Austria and undermine the Austrian government. In 1934, Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss was assassinated by Austrian Nazis during an attempted coup.

In early 1938, Austrian chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced a referendum on unification with Germany, to be held on March 13. Hitler, portraying this as defying the popular will, threatened an invasion and pressured Schuschnigg to resign. On March 12, the German army crossed the border into Austria, unopposed by the Austrian military. On March 12, Hitler accompanied German troops into Austria, where they were met by enthusiastic crowds. A plebiscite was held on April 10, resulting in 99.7% approval for the Anschluss. However, the vote was not anonymous, and it is estimated that about 70% of Austrians would have voted to preserve Austrian independence.

The annexation of Austria demonstrated Hitler's aggressive territorial ambitions and was the first step in his takeover of Europe. It also violated the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain, which expressly forbade the unification of Austria and Germany. The failure of the British and French to take action against Hitler for violating these treaties emboldened him towards further aggression.

The persecution of Austrian Jews

The First Days of Persecution

In the first days after the Anschluss, Jews were driven through the streets of Vienna, their homes and shops plundered. They were forced to wash away pro-independence slogans painted on the streets ahead of the failed 13th March plebiscite. Jewish actresses were forced to clean toilets, and many Jews tried to flee the country, while others committed suicide. Over 200 Viennese Jews took their own lives in the two weeks following the Anschluss.

The Mauthausen Concentration Camp

The first Austrian concentration camp was established at Mauthausen in August 1938. Mauthausen became the main Nazi camp in Austria, with thousands of prisoners worked to death.

Kristallnacht

The Kristallnacht pogrom of 9-10 November 1938 saw synagogues and prayer houses in Vienna and other Austrian cities destroyed, and Jewish shops looted. Over 6,000 Jews were arrested overnight, most of whom were deported to concentration camps in the following days.

Aryanisation

The process of Aryanisation saw Jews driven out of public life in Austria within months of the Anschluss. Jewish organisations and institutions were dissolved, and Jews were gradually robbed of their freedoms, blocked from almost all professions, shut out of schools and universities, and forced to wear the Yellow badge from September 1941.

Plunder of Jewish Property

Jewish property was seized as part of the Holocaust, with a massive transfer of homes, businesses, real estate, financial assets and artworks from Jews to non-Jews.

Emigration

The Nazis allowed the Jewish community in Vienna to resume activities in May 1938, with the intended goal of organising and accelerating mass emigration of Jews from Austria. In the years following the Anschluss, thousands of Jews emigrated from Austria. Between 1938 and 1940, 117,000 Jews left Austria, and by the outbreak of war in September 1939, as many as 126,445 Jews had departed.

Deportation and Extermination

The deportation of Austrian Jews to death camps began in February 1941, and by November 1942, the Viennese community had been officially liquidated, with approximately 7,000 Jews remaining in Austria. The deportations continued until March 1945. As a result of the Holocaust, between 60,000 and 65,000 Austrian Jews lost their lives, with fewer than 800 surviving until the liberation of Vienna in April 1945.

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