Austria's Complicity In Wwii: Victims Or Perpetrators?

Austria's role in World War II has been the subject of historical debate, with some arguing that the country was a victim of Nazi Germany's aggression and others contending that it was complicit in the regime's crimes. The country was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938, an event known as the Anschluss, and became an integral part of the Third Reich with widespread support from the Austrian population. Austrians served in the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS, and many held key positions in the Nazi administration, including in death camps. However, Austria was also occupied by the Allies during the war and suffered significant casualties and destruction. The country's complex role in WWII, including the extent of collaboration and resistance, has been the subject of ongoing historical analysis and debate.

The Soviet Occupation of Austria

Austria was jointly occupied by the Western Allies and the Soviet Union from 1945 to 1955. In April 1945, Soviet commander Fyodor Tolbukhin's troops crossed the former Austrian border at Klostermarienberg in Burgenland. On 20 April 1945, the Soviets instructed Karl Renner, an Austrian socialist politician, to form a provisional government. Renner's cabinet took office, declared Austria's independence from Nazi Germany, and called for the creation of a democratic state. The Western allies suspected the establishment of a puppet state and refused to recognize Renner's government.

Soviet occupation policies in Austria were shaped by the Moscow Declaration of 1943, in which the British, Americans, and Soviets proclaimed that Austria was Germany's first victim but would also have to pay the price for its participation in Nazi aggression. The Red Army occupied only parts of Austria, including the capital, Vienna. Thereafter, France, Great Britain, the United States, and the Soviet Union divided Austria into four occupation zones.

Although Moscow treated Austria as a defeated Axis power, it maintained the general line that Austria was a victim of Germany. As a result, Austria avoided some of the harshest consequences of Germany's defeat. It did not lose any territory, and Austrians were not expelled or deported for slave labor like ethnic Germans from Eastern Europe. Additionally, the Western Allies successfully opposed the Kremlin's plans to impose burdensome war reparations on Austria.

However, the Western Allies consented to Moscow's demand to be entitled to German assets in Austria within their zone of occupation. Moscow considered all property with German owners or investors at the end of the war to be German property. This led to the seizure of industrial plants, production installations, and goods by NKVD (Soviet secret police) teams of professional looters. In June 1946, 30% of Austria's national budget went towards covering occupation costs, and it is estimated that Austria paid the Soviet Union 36.8 billion Schillings from 1946 to 1955.

The Soviet Union did not attempt to impose a communist dictatorship in Austria, and the scale of political violence experienced by Austrians was more limited compared to other countries occupied by the Red Army. In the initial eight months of occupation, Soviet military tribunals arrested around 800 Austrian civilians. By 1955, when the Red Army withdrew from the country, the Soviets had arrested 2,400 Austrians, with 1,250 prosecuted for various crimes, including war crimes and everyday criminal activity. Around 150 were executed, while others received lengthy prison sentences.

During the occupation, the Soviet troops committed widespread looting and sexual assaults against Austrian civilians. In Vienna alone, it is estimated that the Red Army raped between 70,000 and 100,000 women. The wild looting and sexual assaults violated standing policies, and officers themselves often led the way in plundering and attacking women. However, the Soviet leadership attempted to prevent or minimize the rampage through propaganda, urging soldiers to treat Austrian civilians humanely.

The occupation ended in 1955, with the Soviet Union and Western Allies withdrawing their troops from Austria in exchange for promises of Austrian neutrality in the Cold War.

The Austrian Victim Theory

The theory became a fundamental myth in Austrian society, allowing previously bitter political opponents, such as the Social Democrats and the conservative Catholics, to unite and bring former Nazis back into social and political life. For almost half a century, the Austrian state denied the existence of any continuity between it and the political regime that had existed in Austria from 1938 to 1945. Postwar denazification was quickly abandoned, and veterans of the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS took an honourable place in society. The struggle for justice by the actual victims of Nazism, primarily Jews, was dismissed as an attempt to obtain illicit enrichment at the expense of the rest of the Austrian nation.

The idea of Austria as a victim of Nazi aggression was first proposed by the Allies in 1943, who agreed in the Declaration of Moscow that Austria would be regarded as the first victim of Nazi aggression and treated as a liberated and independent country after the war. This declaration was influenced by the British, who had no plans for Austria's future and were more concerned with containing communism in the region.

However, the Victim Theory was not universally accepted, and there was significant opposition from within Austria and abroad. Powerful external pressure and an internal political discussion forced Austrians to reconsider their attitude towards the past. In 1986, the election of a former Wehrmacht intelligence officer, Kurt Waldheim, as federal president put Austria on the verge of international isolation. Starting with the political administration in 1988, and followed by most of the Austrian people, the nation admitted its collective responsibility for the crimes committed during the Nazi occupation and officially abandoned the Victim Theory.

The Annexation of Austria

In the years leading up to the Anschluss, Austria experienced a prolonged period of economic stagnation, political dictatorship, and intense Nazi propaganda. The Austrian Nazi Party, though initially weak and divided, gained supporters as Hitler's popularity in Germany increased, particularly after he became chancellor in 1933. Austrian politics at the time was characterised by infighting and political violence, with the rise of the Nazis further destabilising the situation.

On July 25, 1934, Austrian Nazis attempted a coup, assassinating Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss. However, the majority of Austrians remained loyal to the government, and the coup was defeated. This failed coup attempt made it clear that the Nazis would have to take a slower approach to gain control of Austria.

In February 1938, Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg met with Hitler and was presented with a series of demands, including coordinating Austria's foreign and military policies with Germany and placing Austrian Nazis in charge of policing and security. Schuschnigg was intimidated by the presence of German generals and gave in to Hitler's demands, signing the Berchtesgaden Agreement.

In a final attempt to assert Austrian independence, Schuschnigg called for a plebiscite (referendum) on March 9, 1938, to be held on March 13. However, on March 11, Hitler gave the Austrian government a series of ultimatums, demanding that Schuschnigg cancel the plebiscite, resign, and appoint Austrian Nazi Arthur Seyss-Inquart as the new chancellor. Faced with the threat of a German military invasion, Schuschnigg conceded and announced his resignation on the evening of March 11.

On March 12, Austrian President Wilhelm Miklas appointed Seyss-Inquart as chancellor, who announced a new cabinet filled with Austrian Nazis. Early the next morning, German troops crossed the Austrian border and were greeted with cheers and flowers. On March 13, Seyss-Inquart signed the "Reunification of Austria with Germany" law, formally incorporating Austria into Nazi Germany.

The Anschluss resulted in an outburst of public violence against Austria's Jewish population, who were subjected to laws and restrictions that discriminated against them. Pogrom-like violence occurred across the country, with Austrian Nazis beating, attacking, and humiliating Jews. Many Jews decided to try to leave Austria, and lines appeared at consulates across Vienna.

The Anschluss was widely popular in both Germany and Austria, with Austrians enthusiastically participating in the Nazification of their country. They enacted Nazi policies, fought in World War II, and participated in the mass murder of Europe's Jews.

The Austrian Resistance

One notable resistance group was led by the priest Heinrich Maier. This group sought to re-establish a Habsburg monarchy after the war and played a crucial role in providing the Allies with information on the production sites of V-1, V-2 rockets, Tiger tanks, and aircraft. The intelligence they gathered enabled the Allies to conduct precise airstrikes while minimising civilian casualties. Maier's group was also one of the earliest to report the mass murder of Jews, utilising contacts at the Semperit factory near Auschwitz.

In addition to armed resistance, many individuals provided support to Jewish families during the Holocaust. They hid individuals, managed or exchanged their property to generate funds, and aided their escape from Nazi persecution, despite the immense personal risk involved.

Another form of resistance came from religious groups, particularly the Catholic Church. Three large regional Catholic-based resistance groups were formed in response to anti-Catholic measures imposed by the Nazis. However, these groups were infiltrated by Gestapo spies, leading to the arrest and execution of several key members.

Overall, the Austrian resistance encompassed a diverse range of political and religious ideologies, all united in their opposition to Nazi rule. Their efforts included disseminating counter-Nazi propaganda, collecting donations for affected families, and providing crucial intelligence to the Allies.

The Austrian Holocaust

Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938, with the overwhelming support of the Austrian population. The country was then considered an integral part of the Third Reich, with 700,000 people, or 10% of the population, joining the Nazi Party. The Wehrmacht drafted more than 1.3 million Austrians between 1938 and 1945, 242,000 of whom never returned.

The Holocaust drastically reduced the Jewish community in Austria, with only 8,140 Jews remaining in the country according to the 2001 census. The Nazis' anti-Jewish measures forced most Jews to emigrate, but the process was deliberately made extremely difficult. The emigration center was in Vienna, and people were required to obtain numerous documents from different departments. They were not allowed to take cash, stocks, valuable items, antiques, or artwork, and to leave the country, a large 'departure tax' had to be paid. By the summer of 1939, 110,000 Jews had departed, and the last Jews left legally in 1941. Almost all those who remained were murdered in the Holocaust.

The main concentration camp in Austria was the Mauthausen Concentration Camp, located next to the city of Linz. Jews were also sent to the Theresienstadt concentration camp and the Łódź ghetto in Poland, and from there, they were transported to the Auschwitz concentration camp. In the summer of 1939, hundreds of Jewish factories and stores were shut down by the government, and in October 1941, Jews were forbidden to exit the boundaries of Austria.

The total number of Austrian Jews murdered during the Holocaust is about 65,500 people, 62,000 of whom are known by name. The rest of the Jewish population, excluding up to 5,000 who managed to survive in Austria, emigrated—about 135,000 people of Jewish religion or ancestry.

In 1991, the Austrian government acknowledged its role in the crimes of the Third Reich during World War II. In 2000, a memorial to the Austrian Jewish victims of the Holocaust was built.

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