Austria's Jewish Loss Of Life During World War Ii

The Holocaust saw the systematic persecution and murder of Jews by German and Austrian Nazis from 1938 to 1945. An estimated 6 million Jews were killed during this time, with 70,000 of these murders taking place in Austria.

The Holocaust in Austria

An estimated 70,000 Jews (nearly 40%) were murdered and 125,000 were forced to flee Austria as refugees. According to Israel's national Holocaust museum, Yad Vashem, 38,000 Jews were killed or died from the harsh conditions at Mauthausen.

Despite these facts, a survey found that 56% of Austrians did not know that 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust, and 36% believed that 2 million Jews or fewer were killed. Twenty-five percent believed fewer than 1 million Jews were killed, and 12% put the number of Jewish deaths in the Holocaust at less than 100,000. The numbers were higher among younger respondents, with 58% of millennial or Gen Z respondents not knowing that 6 million Jews were killed. Notably, 42% of respondents were unfamiliar with the Mauthausen concentration camp, located 146 kilometres (90 miles) from Vienna.

The Mauthausen concentration camp

Mauthausen was a German Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen, 20 kilometres (12 miles) east of Linz, Upper Austria. It was one of the worst of the concentration camps, with a reputation for lethality. It was established in April 1938, shortly after Austria was annexed to Nazi Germany. It was founded on orders from Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler, as part of an expansion of the concentration-camp network.

Mauthausen was the main camp of a group with nearly 100 further subcamps located throughout Austria and southern Germany. The three Gusen concentration camps in and around the village of St. Georgen/Gusen, just a few kilometres from Mauthausen, held a significant proportion of prisoners within the camp complex, at times exceeding the number of prisoners at the Mauthausen main camp.

The camp provided slave labour to work previously abandoned stone quarries nearby. During its first year, the camp received prisoners transferred from Dachau—mainly convicted criminals, but also so-called “asocial elements,” including political prisoners, homosexuals, and others.

Of a total of around 190,000 people imprisoned in the Mauthausen concentration camp and its subcamps over seven years, at least 90,000 died, including 38,000 Jews. The Mauthausen main camp operated from 8 August 1938, several months after the German annexation of Austria, to 5 May 1945, when it was liberated by the United States Army.

The Anschluss

Austria had a powerful legacy of anti-Semitism which found its full expression in Adolf Hitler. The Mauthausen concentration camp, located 146 kilometres (90 miles) from Vienna, was the site of the deaths of 38,000 Jews out of a total of 119,000 people.

Despite these facts, many Austrians are unaware of the extent of the Holocaust. According to a 2019 survey, 56% of Austrians did not know that 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust, and 36% believed that 2 million Jews or fewer were killed. These numbers were even higher among younger respondents, with 58% of millennial or Gen Z respondents not knowing that 6 million Jews were killed.

Furthermore, there is a relatively low rate of recognition for Austrians who acted to rescue Jewish people during the war. Only 109 people out of a wartime population of roughly 6.7 million are recognised as having done so by Yad Vashem, compared to neighbouring Hungary's rate of six times Austria's per capita.

Anti-Semitism in Austria

Austria had a powerful legacy of Anti-Semitism which found its full expression in Adolf Hitler. This is reflected in the fact that only 109 people out of a wartime population of roughly 6.7 million are recognised as having acted to rescue the Jewish people during the war. In comparison, neighbouring Hungary has 844 recognised as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem out of a wartime population of roughly 9 million – about six times Austria’s per capita rate.

A survey by Israel’s national Holocaust museum, Yad Vashem, found that 56 percent of Austrians did not know that 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. Twenty-five percent believed fewer than 1 million Jews were killed, and 12% put the number of Jewish deaths in the Holocaust at less than 100,000. The numbers were higher among younger respondents: Fifty-eight percent of millennial or Gen Z respondents did not know that 6 million Jews were killed. Significantly, 30% believed that less than 1 million were killed and 17% believed 100,000 Jews were murdered. Notably, 42% of respondents were unfamiliar with the Mauthausen concentration camp, located 146 kilometres (90 miles) from Vienna, where 38,000 Jews were killed or died from harsh conditions.

The number of Jews killed in the Holocaust

It is estimated that 6 million Jews were killed in the Holocaust. However, a survey found that 56% of Austrians did not know this, with 36% believing that 2 million or fewer Jews were killed. Twenty-five per cent believed fewer than 1 million Jews were killed, and 12% put the number of Jewish deaths in the Holocaust at less than 100,000.

In Austria, an estimated 70,000 Jews were murdered, nearly 40% of the Jewish population of the country at the time. The Jewish population of Austria was approximately 192,000 in 1938, mostly in Vienna. Jews flourished in Austria in the 1930s, with leading figures in the sciences, the arts, business, industry, and trades of all kinds. However, after the German annexation of Austria, known as the Anschluss, Jews were systematically persecuted, plundered and killed by German and Austrian Nazis. In addition to the 70,000 Jews murdered, 125,000 were forced to flee Austria as refugees.

At the Mauthausen concentration camp, located 146km from Vienna, 38,000 Jews were killed or died from harsh conditions. However, 42% of Austrians surveyed were unfamiliar with the camp.

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