Austria's Wwii Alliance: Friend Or Foe To Germany?

Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938, an event known as the Anschluss. The country was renamed Ostmark and became a province of Germany. While Austria was technically a victim of Nazi aggression, many Austrians were personally involved in the crimes of the Third Reich. During World War II, hundreds of thousands of Austrians fought as German soldiers, and a substantial number served in the SS, the elite military corps of the Nazi Party.

Austria was part of Nazi Germany from 13 March 1938 until 27 April 1945

The Annexation of Austria

On 12 March 1938, German troops crossed the Austrian border, unopposed by the Austrian military. The Austrian government had ordered the Austrian Bundesheer not to resist. The German army was greeted by cheering Austrians with Nazi salutes, Nazi flags, and flowers. The annexation of Austria was completed the following day, on 13 March 1938, when the Austrian government passed the “Reunification with Germany Law”.

The Austrian Plebiscite

A plebiscite was held on 10 April 1938, which officially recorded a support of 99.7% of the voters. However, the process was neither free nor secret. Officials were present directly beside the voting booths and received the voting ballot by hand, and the voting rights of around 360,000 people (8% of the eligible voting population) were abrogated.

Austrian Support for the Anschluss

The enthusiasm displayed toward Hitler and the Germans surprised both Nazis and non-Nazis, as most people had believed that a majority of Austrians opposed the Anschluss. Hitler's popularity reached an unprecedented peak after he fulfilled the Anschluss because he had completed the long-awaited idea of a Greater Germany. However, the support of the Austrians for the annexation was ambivalent. While the Social Democratic Party of Austria leader Karl Renner and the highest representative of the Roman Catholic Church in Austria Cardinal Theodor Innitzer both endorsed the Anschluss, Austrian socialists and workers reacted with disgust.

The End of the Anschluss

Austria remained part of Germany until the end of World War II. On 27 April 1945, a provisional government in Allied-occupied Austria declared the Anschluss "null and void", and Austria was once again recognised as a separate country.

The Anschluss saw Austria annexed by Germany

The Anschluss, which took place from March 11-13, 1938, saw Austria annexed by Germany. This event was the culmination of years of political tension and upheaval in Austria, and it was the first step in Hitler's plan to create a "Greater Germany".

In the years following World War I, the idea of unifying Austria and Germany into a single nation-state gained support in both countries, particularly among those who believed that Austria was not economically viable without the lands it had lost at the end of the war. However, the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain expressly forbade the unification of the two countries. Despite this, support for unification remained strong in Austria, especially among citizens of the political left and center.

When Hitler rose to power in Germany in 1933, the desire for unification became closely associated with the Nazis. Hitler himself, an Austrian by birth, had expressed his desire to unite the two countries as early as 1920 in the Nazi Party Platform, and again in his autobiography, Mein Kampf. In the mid-1930s, Austrian Nazis, with encouragement and funding from Germany, began a propaganda and terror campaign aimed at undermining the Austrian government. This campaign included disruptive protests, brawls with political opponents, and the bombing of public places and Jewish-owned businesses.

In 1934, Austrian Nazis attempted a coup, assassinating Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss. However, the majority of Austrians remained loyal to the government, and the coup failed. Hitler denied any involvement in the plot, but it was clear that he intended to gain control of Austria. In 1938, Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg attempted to assert Austrian independence by calling for a plebiscite on the issue. Infuriated, Hitler decided to invade Austria immediately to prevent the vote. On March 11, Schuschnigg cancelled the plebiscite and offered to resign to avoid bloodshed. Hitler demanded that the president of Austria, Wilhelm Miklas, appoint an Austrian Nazi as the new chancellor. When Miklas refused, Hitler ordered the invasion to begin at dawn on March 12.

German soldiers crossed the border early on the morning of March 12, encountering no resistance. Austrians welcomed Hitler warmly as he traveled through the country, and on March 13, Austrian Nazi Chancellor Arthur Seyss-Inquart signed the "Reunification of Austria with Germany" law, formally incorporating Austria into Nazi Germany. Austria was now a province of Germany, and the Nazis set about erasing any traces of a separate Austrian identity.

The Anschluss was a significant breach of the post-World War I international order, and it demonstrated the failure of the British and French to take action against Hitler's aggressive territorial ambitions. It was also a turning point for Austria's Jewish population, who now faced discrimination, persecution, and violence at the hands of Austrian Nazis.

Austrians made up a large proportion of the SS and concentration camp personnel

Austria was part of Nazi Germany from 13 March 1938 until 27 April 1945. During this time, Austrians made up a large proportion of the SS and concentration camp personnel.

The Austrian SS was founded in 1930 and, by 1934, was acting as a covert force to bring about the Anschluss with Germany. Austrian SS members were considered regular personnel and served in every branch of the SS, including concentration camps, Einsatzgruppen, and the Security Services. Political scientist David Art of Tufts University notes that Austrians comprised 8% of the Third Reich's population and 13% of the SS; he states that 40% of the staff and 75% of commanders at death camps were Austrian.

The Mauthausen concentration camp, established in 1938, was the first concentration camp opened in Austria following the Anschluss. By the summer of 1940, Mauthausen had become one of the largest labour camp complexes in the German-controlled part of Europe, with four main subcamps and nearly 100 other subcamps located throughout Austria and southern Germany. It is estimated that 197,464 prisoners passed through the Mauthausen camp system between August 1938 and May 1945, with at least 95,000 dying there.

In addition to Mauthausen, there were several other concentration camps in Austria, including Gusen, Ebensee, and Steyr-Münichholz. Mass murder was also practised in Hartheim Castle near Linz and in the Am Spiegelgrund clinic in Vienna, where more than 700 handicapped children were murdered.

Overall, Austrians were overrepresented in the system of terror against Jews and other persecuted groups. Austrians loyally supported Germany through the early years of World War II, and hundreds of thousands of Austrians fought as German soldiers. By the end of the war, approximately 250,000 Austrians had been killed or were missing in action.

Austria was the first country invaded by the Germans in 1938

Austria was the first country invaded by Germany in 1938. This invasion, known as the Anschluss, took place on March 12, 1938, when German troops marched into Austria to annex the German-speaking nation for the Third Reich.

The idea of a united Austria and Germany, or a "Greater Germany," had been gaining support since the 1871 unification of Germany, which excluded Austria. By the 1920s, the proposal had strong support in both countries, particularly among Austrian citizens of the political left and center. However, support for unification began to fade over time, although it remained a concept in contemporary Austrian political discourse.

In early 1938, Austrian Nazis conspired to seize the Austrian government and unite their nation with Nazi Germany. Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg, in an attempt to reassert his country's independence, met with Nazi leader Adolf Hitler but was bullied into naming several top Austrian Nazis to his cabinet. On March 9, Schuschnigg called for a national vote to resolve the question of Anschluss once and for all. However, before the plebiscite could take place, Schuschnigg gave in to pressure from Hitler and resigned on March 11.

The next day, on March 12, Hitler accompanied German troops into Austria, where they were met with enthusiasm by the crowds. Hitler appointed a new Nazi government, and on March 13, the Anschluss was proclaimed. Austria became a federal state of Germany and remained so until the end of World War II, when the Allied powers declared the Anschluss void and reestablished an independent Austria.

The invasion of Austria was the first step in Hitler's plan to create a Greater German Reich that included all ethnic Germans and territories lost by the German Empire after World War I. It demonstrated Hitler's aggressive territorial ambitions and the failure of Britain and France to take action against him for violating the Versailles Treaty.

Austrians were drafted into the German Wehrmacht

Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938, and it remained a part of Nazi Germany until 27 April 1945, when Allied-occupied Austria declared independence. During this time, many Austrians were drafted into the German Wehrmacht.

Following the annexation, the Austrian military was integrated into the Wehrmacht. The majority of Austrian personnel were transferred to the Wehrmacht, and those officers who refused to swear an oath to Hitler were forcefully retired. Conscription was also reintroduced in Austria, and Austrian divisions and brigades were converted into units of the Wehrmacht, such as the 44. Infanterie-Division, 45. Infanterie-Division, 2. Gebirgs-Division, and 3. Gebirgs-Division. These units drafted their enlisted personnel from Austria.

During World War II, around 800,000 Austrians were drafted into the Wehrmacht, and another 150,000 served in the Waffen-SS, an elite Nazi military unit. Austrians were integrated into German units, and no specifically Austrian military brigades were formed. Austrians were generally treated as equals in the Wehrmacht, and there was little resentment.

While the great majority of Austrians were not Nazis, popular support for Germany's wartime policies remained strong until the later phases of the war. However, it is important to note that Austrians were not just drafted into the Wehrmacht but also actively participated in the Nazi regime and the Final Solution.

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