Austria's Invasion: Germany's Takeover Strategy And Motives

On March 12, 1938, German troops invaded Austria, annexing the German-speaking nation for the Third Reich. This event, known as the Anschluss, saw the unification of Austria and Germany into a Greater Germany. The idea of the Anschluss was not new, having gained support in both Austria and Germany after Austria was stripped of its imperial land following World War I. However, it was under the leadership of Adolf Hitler that the annexation of Austria was realised.

The Anschluss

In the 1920s, the proposal for unification gained support in both Austria and Germany, particularly from Austrian citizens of the political left and center. However, after Adolf Hitler's rise to power in 1933, the desire for unification became associated with the Nazis, who saw it as an integral part of their "Heim ins Reich" ("back home to the realm") concept.

In early 1938, Austrian chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced a referendum on a possible union with Germany, to be held on March 13, 1938. However, under pressure from Hitler, who threatened an invasion, Schuschnigg resigned on March 11, and the German army crossed the border into Austria on March 12, unopposed by the Austrian military. A plebiscite was held on April 10, with the ballot not being secret, and threats and coercion being employed, resulting in 99.7% approval for the Anschluss.

The unification of Austria and Germany had been a long-standing idea, and while it was popular among some Austrians, there were also those who opposed it, including Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss, who was assassinated by Austrian Nazis in 1934 during an attempted coup. The unification also violated the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint Germain, which expressly forbade the unification of Austria and Germany.

The Austrian Civil War

The conflict began when Republican Protection League members fired on Austrian police who were attempting to enter the Social Democrats' party headquarters in Linz to search for weapons. The fighting spread to Vienna and other industrial centres in eastern and central Austria. The Austrian police and Federal Army's superior numbers and firepower quickly put an end to the uprising. The overall death toll is estimated at 350.

The socialists' defeat led to arrests, executions, and the banning of the Social Democratic Party. In May 1934, Austria's democratic constitution was replaced by the Austrofascist constitution of the Federal State of Austria, with the Fatherland Front as the only legal party.

The polarised political situation in Austria in the late 1920s was exacerbated by paramilitary units such as the Home Guard (associated with the right) and the Republican Protection League (associated with the left). By the start of the civil war, the Home Guard were openly fascist and opposed to democracy, while the Republican Protection League saw itself as a protector of the Austrian Republic and held pro-democracy views. The Austrian Nazi Party, though still small, had its own paramilitary units—the SA and SS.

The rise of the Nazi Party in Austria

Socio-Political Landscape in Austria:

• After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, Austria became a republic with several political groups vying for power, including the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SDAP), Christian Social Party (CS), and the nationalist Great German Union (GVP).
• Many Austrian pan-Germans felt that the new republic violated the self-determination principle advocated by US President Woodrow Wilson during peace talks.
• The SDAP, GVP, and DNSAP favoured a union with Germany, while the CS was initially split between supporting the monarchy or a republic.
• The Treaty of Saint-Germain, signed in 1919, explicitly forbade a union between Austria and Germany and established Austria as an independent country.

Economic Factors:

• Austria faced serious economic challenges due to the loss of industrial areas and natural resources that were previously part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
• Hyperinflation and increasing tension between different political groups further exacerbated the economic situation.
• Many Austrians believed that their country could not survive economically without the territories it had lost, leading to a desire for unification with Germany.

Rise of Austrian National Socialism:

• The Austrian National Socialist movement, known as the Deutsche Nationalsozialistische Arbeiterpartei (DNSAP), emerged in the early 1920s and advocated for Austria to become part of Germany.
• In 1923, the DNSAP, led by Walter Riehl, had around 23,000 members but remained a marginal force in Austrian politics.
• The Austrian Nazis gained support due to the economic crisis, using slogans such as "500,000 Unemployed – 400,000 Jews – Simple way out; vote National Socialist".
• By 1930, the Austrian Nazi Party received only 3.6% of the votes and failed to enter Parliament, but they continued to gain support, especially after Hitler's rise to power in Germany in 1933.

Dictatorship and Civil War:

• In 1932, the Christian Social Party, led by Engelbert Dollfuss, established an authoritarian regime known as the Austrofascist Ständestaat, banning opposition parties and suppressing political dissent.
• In July 1934, Austrian and German Nazis attempted a coup, but it was unsuccessful, leading to a civil war that resulted in the defeat of the Social Democrats.
• Dollfuss was assassinated during the coup attempt, and his successor, Kurt Schuschnigg, continued his policies, maintaining Austria's independence and aligning with Fascist Italy.

Growing German Influence:

• Hitler and the Nazis had long desired a union between Germany and Austria, considering it a crucial step towards creating a "Greater Germany".
• In 1936, Schuschnigg signed the July Agreement with Germany, releasing imprisoned Nazis and allowing some Nazi newspapers into Austria, but the Nazi Party remained banned.
• Hitler's strategy, outlined in the Hossbach Memorandum, included the annexation of Austria as part of his plan to gain Lebensraum ("living space").
• In February 1938, Hitler met with Schuschnigg and forced him to appoint Austrian Nazis to his cabinet, including Arthur Seyss-Inquart as Home Secretary.

Anschluss:

• On March 9, 1938, Schuschnigg called for a plebiscite to resolve the question of Anschluss once and for all, but he ultimately succumbed to pressure from Hitler and resigned on March 11.
• On March 12, German troops marched into Austria, and Hitler appointed a new Nazi government, with Seyss-Inquart as chancellor.
• The annexation of Austria, known as the Anschluss, was widely popular in both Germany and Austria, with many Austrians cheering the German troops.
• A plebiscite held on April 10, 1938, resulted in a 99.7% approval for the Anschluss, although it is important to note that the vote was not secret, and coercion was employed to manipulate the outcome.

The Austrian Plebiscite

Background

The idea of a unified Austria and Germany, or Anschluss, gained support after World War I. The new Republic of German-Austria attempted to form a union with Germany, but the 1919 Treaty of Saint Germain and Treaty of Versailles forbade both the union and the continued use of the name "German-Austria". The treaties also stripped Austria of some of its territories, such as the Sudetenland, leaving it amid an economic crisis.

In the 1920s, the Anschluss proposal had strong support in both Austria and Germany, particularly from Austrian citizens of the political left and center. However, popular support for the unification faded over time. After Adolf Hitler rose to power in 1933, the desire for unification became associated with the Nazis, for whom it was an integral part of their "Heim ins Reich" ("back home to the realm") concept.

In early 1938, Austrian chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced that there would be a referendum on a possible union with Germany versus maintaining Austria's sovereignty, to be held on March 13, 1938. However, under pressure from Hitler, Schuschnigg resigned on March 11 and called off the referendum. The next day, German troops crossed the border into Austria, unopposed by the Austrian military.

The Plebiscite

The plebiscite was held on April 10, 1938, and was neither free nor secret. Political enemies (communists, socialists, etc.) and Austrian citizens of Roma or Jewish origin—roughly 360,000 people or 8% of the Austrian population—were not allowed to vote. The ballot was not secret, and threats and coercion were employed to manipulate the vote. The ballot paper featured a large circle for 'yes' votes and a small one for 'no' votes, and voters were pressured to mark their ballot in front of campaign workers.

The officially published results showed 99.73% of voters in favour of the Anschluss. However, historians have cautioned that the result needs to be taken with "great caution" due to the large-scale Nazi propaganda and abrogation of voting rights for a significant portion of the population. According to estimates by the Austrian government, with a voting age of 24, about 70% of Austrians would have voted to preserve Austrian independence. In case of a fair plebiscite, the Anschluss would have been supported by only about 20% of the Austrian population.

Aftermath

After the referendum's "approval", Austria was integrated as several administrative divisions into Nazi Germany. The Anschluss demonstrated Hitler's aggressive territorial ambitions and the failure of the British and French to take action against him for violating the Versailles Treaty.

The Allied response

The Allied powers declared the Anschluss "null and void" on 27 April 1945, reestablishing an independent Austria.

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