Hitler's Invasion Of Austria: Racial Ideology

Hitler justified the invasion of Austria by insisting that German-speaking Austria be unified with Germany. This was an idea that had been around since the unification of Germany in 1871, which excluded Austria and the German Austrians from the Prussian-dominated German Empire. The notion of a 'Greater Germany' gained support after the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918 and Hitler had expressed his desire for an Austro-German union in his earliest writings and speeches.

Hitler wanted to unify all German-speaking Austrians with Germany

Hitler's invasion of Austria, known as the Anschluss, was justified by his insistence on unifying all German-speaking Austrians with Germany. This argument was rooted in the belief that all Germans should be united in a Greater Germany or Großdeutschland, as stated in the first point of the 1920 Nazi Party Platform. This desire for unification was also expressed in Hitler's autobiography, Mein Kampf, where he wrote about his vision for the reunification of Germany and Austria.

The idea of the Anschluss gained support after World War I, when the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain expressly forbade the unification of the two countries. Many Austrians felt that their country could not survive economically without the territories it had previously held. Additionally, the rise of Nazism in Germany and the establishment of the Nazi Party in Austria fueled the desire for unification.

Hitler, himself an Austrian German by birth, played a key role in promoting the idea of a united German nation. In his speeches and writings, he emphasized the common blood and heritage of Germans and Austrians, arguing that they belonged in a common Reich. He also exploited the economic turmoil in Austria, suggesting that unification would bring about economic improvement.

The unification of German-speaking Austrians with Germany was a central tenet of Hitler's ideology, and it served as the primary justification for the invasion of Austria in 1938.

He wanted to redraw the map of post-World War I Europe

Adolf Hitler and the Nazis wanted to redraw the map of post-World War I Europe. They considered the postwar international borders unfair and illegitimate, claiming that Germans had been denied the right of self-determination. Hitler expressed his desire for an Austro-German union in his earliest writings and speeches. The first point of the Nazi Party Platform (1920) read:

> "We demand the union of all Germans in a Greater Germany (Großdeutschland) on the basis of the right of national self-determination."

Hitler opened his autobiography and political treatise Mein Kampf with his vision for the future relationship between Austria and Germany. He wrote,

> "...the reunification [of Germany and Austria] is a life task to be carried out by all means! German-Austria must be restored to the great German Motherland…People of the same blood should be in the same REICH."

Hitler's plan for Austria was twofold:

• Unite all Germans in a Nazi German empire
• Acquire Lebensraum ("living space") in eastern Europe

The annexation of Austria would help the Nazis achieve the first goal.

Hitler was an Austrian German by birth and became involved in politics at a young age. In 1919, he joined the German Workers' Party (DAP) and impressed the other party members with his oratorical skills. After becoming leader of the DAP, he addressed a crowd on February 24, 1920, and in an effort to appeal to wider parts of the German population, the DAP was renamed the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP).

As its first point, the 1920 National Socialist Program stated,

> "We demand the unification of all Germans in the Greater Germany on the basis of the people's right to self-determination."

Hitler argued in a 1921 essay that the German Reich had a single task of,

> "Incorporating the ten million German-Austrians in the Empire and dethroning the Habsburgs, the most miserable dynasty ever ruling."

Hitler and the Nazis aimed to reunite all Germans who were either born in the Reich or living outside of it to create an "all-German Reich."

Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf (1925) that he would create a union between his birth country, Austria, and Germany by any means possible. He considered himself a "liberator" of Austria, stating:

> "Not as tyrants have we come, but as liberators."

The idea of an Anschluss (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "Greater Germany") arose after the 1871 unification of Germany excluded Austria and the German Austrians from the Prussian-dominated German Empire. It gained support after the Austro-Hungarian Empire fell in 1918. 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." These treaties also stripped Austria of some of its territories, such as the Sudetenland, leaving Austria without most of the territories it had ruled for centuries and amid an economic crisis.

By the 1920s, the Anschluss proposal had strong support in both Austria and Germany, particularly from Austrian citizens of the political left and center. Support for unification with Germany came mainly from the belief that Austria, stripped of its imperial land, was not viable economically.

Hitler, as chancellor of Germany, was not yet militarily and diplomatically ready to carry out his foreign policy goals regarding Austria. However, behind the scenes, the Nazi leadership began planning territorial expansion and a European war almost as soon as they took power.

Hitler's plan to achieve power in Austria was through the Austrian Nazi Party. However, in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Austrian Nazi Party was weak, divided, and ineffective. It wasn't until 1931 that the bulk of Austrian Nazis recognized Hitler as their leader.

Austrian Nazis gained supporters in 1931–1932 as Hitler’s popularity in Germany increased, and this was even more noticeable across Austria after Hitler was appointed German chancellor in January 1933. Austrian Nazis waged a propaganda and terror campaign, encouraged and funded by Germany, to undermine the Austrian government and make it look incompetent.

In early 1938, under increasing pressure from pro-unification activists, 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. Portraying this as defying the popular will in Austria and Germany, Hitler threatened an invasion and secretly pressured Schuschnigg to resign.

On March 11, 1938, Hitler gave the Austrian government a series of ultimatums:

• Chancellor Schuschnigg must call off the plebiscite
• Schuschnigg must resign as chancellor
• Austrian president Wilhelm Miklas must appoint Austrian Nazi Arthur Seyss-Inquart as the new Austrian chancellor

Hitler's plan was for Seyss-Inquart to call immediately for German troops to rush to Austria's aid, restoring order and giving the invasion an air of legitimacy. In the face of this threat, Schuschnigg informed Seyss-Inquart that the plebiscite would be canceled.

Hitler sent an ultimatum to Schuschnigg on March 11, demanding that he hand over all power to the Austrian Nazis or face an invasion. The ultimatum was set to expire at noon but was extended by two hours. Without waiting for an answer, Hitler had already signed the order to send troops into Austria at one o'clock.

On the morning of March 12, 1938, the 8th Army of the German Wehrmacht crossed the border into Austria. The troops were greeted by cheering Austrians with Nazi salutes, Nazi flags, and flowers. The "invasion" without shots fired was therefore dubbed the Blumenkrieg ("Flower War").

On March 13, 1938, Seyss-Inquart announced the abrogation of Article 88 of the Treaty of Saint-Germain, which prohibited the unification of Austria and Germany, and approved the replacement of the Austrian states with Reichsgaue. The seizure of Austria demonstrated once again Hitler's aggressive territorial ambitions and, once again, the failure of the British and the French to take action against him for violating the Versailles Treaty.

Hitler's journey through Austria became a triumphal tour that climaxed in Vienna on March 15, 1938, when around 200,000 cheering German Austrians gathered around the Heldenplatz (Square of Heroes) to hear Hitler say that:

> "The oldest eastern province of the German people shall be, from this point on, the newest bastion of the German Reich."

Hitler later commented:

> "Certain foreign newspapers have said that we fell on Austria with brutal methods. I can only say: even in death they cannot stop lying. I have in the course of my political struggle won much love from my people, but when

He wanted to unite all Germans in a Nazi German empire

Hitler's invasion of Austria, known as the Anschluss, was justified by his desire to unite all Germans in a Nazi German empire. This was part of his plan to redraw the map of post-World War I Europe, which he considered unfair and illegitimate. The annexation of Austria was the first step in Hitler's expansionist agenda, and it was widely popular in both Germany and Austria.

Hitler's ideology centred on the belief in the existence of a superior master race, the Aryan race. He aimed to acquire Lebensraum ("living space") in Eastern Europe for this Aryan master race, which he believed to be the purest branch of the Aryan race. The invasion of Austria was thus justified as a means to unite all Germans under Nazi rule and create a "Greater Germany".

Hitler's belief in the superiority of the Aryan race also led to his disdain for the Treaty of Versailles, which had forbidden the unification of Austria and Germany. By invading Austria, Hitler was able to violate this treaty and demonstrate his disdain for the post-World War I European order.

The idea of an Anschluss (a united Austria and Germany forming a "Greater Germany") was not new and had gained support after World War I, particularly among Austrian citizens who believed that Austria was not economically viable without unification. This support was also reflected in the Nazi Party Platform of 1920, which stated:

> We demand the union of all Germans in a Greater Germany (Großdeutschland) on the basis of the right of national self-determination.

Hitler himself had expressed his desire for an Austro-German union in his earliest writings and speeches. In his autobiography, Mein Kampf, he wrote:

> [T]he reunification [of Germany and Austria] is a life task to be carried out by all means! German-Austria must be restored to the great German Motherland...People of the same blood should be in the same REICH.

Hitler's invasion of Austria in 1938 was, therefore, a fulfilment of his long-held desire to unite all Germans in a Nazi German empire. By annexing Austria, he took the first step towards creating a "Greater Germany" and acquiring Lebensraum in Eastern Europe for the Aryan master race.

He wanted to acquire Lebensraum (living space) in Eastern Europe

Hitler's invasion of Austria in 1938 was part of his plan to acquire Lebensraum ('living space') in Eastern Europe. The concept of Lebensraum was first coined by German geographer Friedrich Ratzel in the late 19th century. Ratzel's theory stated that the development of all species, including humans, is determined by their adaptation to geographic circumstances. Species that successfully adapt to one location will spread to others, and to remain healthy, they must continually expand the amount of space they occupy. This process also applied to humans, who operate collectively in the form of 'peoples' (Völker), with one Völk effectively conquering another.

Hitler's belief in Lebensraum was influenced by Ratzel's work, as well as the writings of other geographers and ethnographers such as Oscar Peschel and Johan Rudolf Kjellén. During his time in Landsberg prison in 1924, Hitler read and discussed Ratzel's work and other geopolitical literature with fellow inmate Rudolf Hess and a Munich Professor of Geography, Karl Haushofer. Haushofer emphasised the 'extremely unfavourable situation of the Reich from the viewpoint of military geography' and Germany's limited resources of food and raw materials, which likely provided Hitler with an intellectual justification for his views.

Hitler's desire for Lebensraum was also influenced by his anti-Slavic and anti-Semitic sentiments. He viewed Slavs as primitive subhumans and believed that the German empire's alliance with Austria-Hungary during World War I was a mistake. He also believed that Bolshevism in Russia was the work of the Jews. In his writings, Hitler claimed that achieving Lebensraum required strong political will, and that the National Socialist Movement should strive to expand the population area of the German people and acquire new sources of food. He rejected the idea of restoring Germany's pre-war borders as an inadequate solution to overpopulation, arguing instead that the nature of national borders is always unfinished and their redrawing must continue as Germany's political goal.

Hitler's invasion of Austria, known as the Anschluss, was a crucial step in his plan to acquire Lebensraum in Eastern Europe. By annexing Austria, Hitler was able to unite all Germans into a 'Greater Germany' and gain access to the country's raw materials and labour force. Austria was rich in raw materials such as magnesium and iron, and it had many unemployed skilled workers, idle factories, and large potential hydroelectric resources. The invasion of Austria was also a way for Hitler to test the resolve of other European powers, as the annexation violated the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain. The failure of these powers to intervene emboldened Hitler to continue his expansionist policies, leading to the invasion of Czechoslovakia and Poland and the start of World War II.

The Nazis' goal of acquiring Lebensraum in Eastern Europe had devastating consequences for the indigenous populations of the region. The Nazi policy, Generalplan Ost, stipulated that most of the indigenous populations of Eastern Europe, including Poles, Ukrainians, Russians, and other Slavic nations, would have to be removed permanently through mass deportation, death, or enslavement. The Jewish population was to be exterminated outright. This policy resulted in the genocide of millions of people and the destruction of entire societies.

He wanted to fulfil his promise in Mein Kampf to unite Austria and Germany

In his 1925 book, Mein Kampf, Hitler wrote about his country of birth, Austria, stating that "German-Austria must return to the great German motherland". He went on to say that "common blood belongs in a common Reich". Hitler's desire to unite Austria and Germany was also reflected in the first point of the Nazi Party Platform (1920), which stated: "We demand the union of all Germans in a Greater Germany".

Hitler's intentions to unite Austria and Germany were further demonstrated in his speeches. In a 1921 essay, Hitler argued that the German Reich had a single task of "incorporating the ten million German-Austrians in the Empire and dethroning the Habsburgs". In a speech to a crowd in 1920, he addressed the need to "incorporate all Germans who were either born in the Reich or living outside it in order to create an 'all-German Reich'".

Hitler's invasion of Austria in 1938, known as the Anschluss, was an attempt to fulfil his promise to unite Austria and Germany. The unification of Austria and Germany was a concept that had gained support in both countries, particularly among Austrian citizens of the political left and centre. The idea of an Anschluss, or a "Greater Germany", arose after the 1871 unification of Germany excluded Austria and the German Austrians from the Prussian-dominated German Empire.

Hitler's invasion of Austria was a premeditated step in his plan to wage aggressive wars against other countries. He justified the invasion by claiming that Austria had descended into chaos and circulating fake reports of rioting in Vienna. Hitler's forces suppressed all opposition, arresting thousands of people, including prominent representatives of the First Republic, Social Democrats, Communists, and Austrian Jews.

The Anschluss was the first act of territorial aggression and expansion by the Nazi German regime, and it demonstrated their disdain for the post-World War I European order. It was widely popular in both Germany and Austria, with many Austrians participating enthusiastically in the Nazification of their country.

Frequently asked questions