Leslie Massey
Austrian Nazism, or Austrian National Socialism, was a pan-German movement that began in the early 20th century. It took a concrete form in 1903 with the establishment of the German Worker's Party (DAP) in Austria. The DAP changed its name to the Deutsche Nationalsozialistische Arbeiterpartei (DNSAP) in 1918 and adopted the swastika as its symbol in 1920. The DNSAP was banned in 1933 under the rule of Engelbert Dollfuss, who was assassinated by Austrian Nazis in 1934. After the German annexation of Austria in 1938, the DNSAP was revived and became part of the German Nazi Party. About 10% of the Austrian population joined the Nazi Party, and many Austrians were personally involved in the crimes of the Third Reich.
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What You'll Learn
Nazi officials parading through Vienna
On March 12, 1938, German troops entered Austria, accompanied by Adolf Hitler himself. The Nazi government in Austria was established and headed by Seyss-Inquart, who, along with Hitler, proclaimed the Anschluss on March 13. France and Great Britain protested against Hitler's methods, but they accepted the union. Austria was completely absorbed into Germany, and any official memory of Austrian existence was destroyed and suppressed. Upper and Lower Austria were renamed Upper and Lower Danube, and the country was renamed Ostmark (Eastern March).
The Nazis immediately arrested many leaders of anti-Nazi Austrian political parties, particularly communists and socialists. Many Austrians, especially those of Jewish origin, were forced into exile. The degradation and persecution of the Austrian Jewish community became known as the Viennese model (Wiener Modell). This model served as a blueprint for the Nazis' expulsion of Jews from Germany and other occupied countries. By the start of World War II in 1939, more than 100,000 Jews, approximately half of Austria's Jewish population, had fled the country.
During this period, Nazi officials and Hitler paraded through Vienna, celebrating their occupation of Austria. Nazi rallies were held in Vienna, with marching bands, soldiers, and Nazi flags. The Viennese events during Kristallnacht in November 1938 demonstrated the virulence of antisemitism in Austria. Dozens of synagogues and hundreds of Jewish-owned shops and apartments were destroyed and plundered during this pogrom.
The majority of Austrians were not Nazis, but popular support for Germany's wartime policies remained strong until the later phases of World War II. Tens of thousands of Austrians were arrested for political reasons during the war, and many died in concentration camps or prisons. About 2,700 were executed. However, an estimated 500,000 Austrians were involved with the Nazi regime, which was a significant number in a country of just six million people.
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Austrian Nazis' coup attempt in 1934
In the early 1930s, the Austrian National Socialists (or Austrian Nazis) linked to Hitler received limited support in Austrian elections, failing to enter Parliament in the 1930 General Election. However, after 1930, Hitler's NSDAP doubled its membership annually due to the economic crisis. By 1933, a crisis in the Austrian parliament gave way to the conversion of the Christian Social Union to the Patriotic Front, an anti-Marxist political organisation claiming to represent all Austrians loyal to their native land.
Amidst these political developments, Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuß established Austria as a one-party state opposed to the Nazis and unification with Germany. This set the stage for the Austrian Nazis' coup attempt in July 1934, also known as the July Putsch. On 25 July 1934, about 150 SS personnel, disguised as soldiers and policemen, forced their way into the Chancellor's office in Vienna. Dollfuß was shot and killed by Otto Planetta, a Nazi, and a false report was broadcast from the Austrian National Radio, declaring the government's fall and the installation of Anton Rintelen, a suspected Nazi sympathiser, as the new head.
This triggered several days of fighting in Carinthia, Styria, and Upper Austria, with limited resistance in Salzburg. The Austrian Legion attempted to push into Upper Austria from Bavaria, but they were forced back to the frontier. A German courier arrested on 26 July carried documents revealing the connection of the revolt to Bavaria. The army, gendarmerie, and police suppressed the revolt, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. Following the failed coup, Hitler closed down the Munich office of the Austrian Nazi Party and denied involvement, but the plot's fallout made it clear that the Nazis would need to bide their time before seizing control of Austria.
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Nazi persecution of Austrian Jews
The persecution of Austrian Jews by the Nazis began in earnest after the annexation of Austria in 1938. Before this, the Austrian Jewish community had flourished, with leading figures in the sciences, the arts, business, industry, and trades. However, the country had a powerful legacy of antisemitism, which was embraced by Adolf Hitler, who was Austrian. In 1895, the Austrian anti-Semite Karl Luger won the majority of the seats in the Vienna municipality and was appointed mayor of the Austrian capital.
After the annexation, the Nazis started instituting anti-Jewish measures throughout the country. Jews were expelled from all cultural, economic, and social life in Austria. Jewish businesses were 'aryanised' and either sold for a fraction of their value or seized outright. Jewish citizens were humiliated as they were forced to perform menial tasks. They were also no longer allowed on public transport. Many regular Austrians joined the Nazis in terrorizing Jews. In one instance, a number of Jews were rounded up on the Sabbath and forced to eat grass at the Prater, a popular Viennese amusement park.
The Mauthausen concentration camp was established in the summer of 1938, and the first Austrian concentration camp was established at Mauthausen in October 1939. The deportation of Austrian Jews to Poland began in October 1939, as part of a larger plan to gather all of Europe's Jewish populace in one territory. The Nazis established centers where Jews were assembled before deportation. About 35,000 Jews were deported from Vienna to ghettos in eastern Europe, and thousands more were sent to concentration camps in Germany.
By November 1942, only about 7,000 Jews remained in Austria, mostly those married to non-Jews. In total, more than 65,000 Austrian Jews perished during the Holocaust, many of them in extermination camps.
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Hitler's invasion of Austria
After World War I, Austria's economy was in a terrible state, in contrast to Germany under Nazi rule. In response to domestic pressures and threats of invasion, Austrian chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced a referendum asking if Austria should become part of Germany. The referendum was scheduled for March 13, 1938. However, the wording of the question angered the Nazis, and Hitler used it to justify his invasion of Austria on March 12, 1938, the day before the referendum.
Hitler acted with speed and energy, taking advantage of Mussolini's neutrality, a ministerial crisis in France, and the British government's indifference to the union of Austria and Germany. On March 11, 1938, Hitler issued an ultimatum to Schuschnigg, demanding his resignation and the appointment of the Nazi Arthur Seyss-Inquart as his replacement. Hitler planned for Seyss-Inquart to call for German troops to restore order, providing a pretext for the invasion. Schuschnigg resigned, and despite initial resistance, Seyss-Inquart was appointed chancellor. Hitler ordered the invasion to commence at dawn on March 12, and German troops crossed the border, accompanied by Hitler himself. The invasion was met with no resistance and was dubbed the "Flower War" due to the cheering Austrians who greeted the troops with Nazi salutes, flags, and flowers.
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Austrians' involvement in the Nazi regime
Austria was characterised by political infighting and violence in the years leading up to the Nazi annexation of the country in 1938. The rise of the Nazis in 1933 further destabilised the country, and Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss transformed Austria from a democratic republic into a right-wing authoritarian regime. Dollfuss's government was diplomatically aligned with Fascist Italy and authoritarian Hungary, and was committed to crushing the political left in Austria.
Austrian Nazis, with encouragement and funding from Germany, waged a propaganda and terror campaign against the Dollfuss regime, attempting to undermine it by making it look incompetent. In June 1933, in response to a fatal Nazi bombing, the Dollfuss regime banned the Austrian Nazi Party and its affiliates, making the Nazi movement illegal in Austria. However, Austrian Nazis continued to operate illegally within the country, and thousands of Austrian Nazis fled across the border into Germany, where they formed a paramilitary unit known as the Austrian Legion.
On July 25, 1934, Austrian Nazis attempted to overthrow the Austrian government. Members of the Vienna SS took control of the Austrian chancellery, where the cabinet had been meeting. The coup failed, and Hitler denied any involvement. The Nazi regime falsely claimed that this had been a rogue plan carried out by the Austrian Nazi movement. Kurt von Schuschnigg took over as Austrian chancellor and dictator after Dollfuss's death, continuing many of his predecessor's authoritarian policies.
The annexation of Austria, known as the Anschluss, was the Nazi German regime's first act of territorial aggression and expansion. On March 11, 1938, two demands were made for the postponement of the plebiscite and the resignation of Schuschnigg, who gave way. German troops, accompanied by Hitler himself, entered Austria on March 12, and a Nazi government in Austria, headed by Seyss-Inquart, was established.
While the majority of Austrians were not Nazis, an estimated 500,000 Austrians were involved with the Nazi regime in a country of just six million people. Austrians comprised about 8% of the population of Nazi Germany, but they made up about 13% of the SS, 40% of concentration camp personnel, and 70-75% of the people who headed concentration camps. Austrians also served loyally as soldiers from Germany and were just as responsible for Nazi atrocities on the Eastern Front.
After World War II, the Soviet Union occupied Austria and arrested around 2,400 Austrians, 1,250 of whom were prosecuted for war crimes and everyday criminal activity. In 1993, Austrian Chancellor Franz Vranitzky acknowledged the shared responsibility of Austrians for Nazi crimes.
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Frequently asked questions
The Nazis were attempting to gain power in Austria. In 1938, a pro-Nazi coup led to the annexation of Austria with Germany, also known as the Anschluss. This was met with overwhelming support from the Austrian population.
The Anschluss was the union of Austria with Germany, which took place in 1938. On March 12, German troops, accompanied by Hitler, entered Austria and established a Nazi government headed by Seyss-Inquart.
Austrians were over-represented in the Nazi regime, with many holding high ranks. For example, Adolf Hitler, Eichmann, and Kaltenbrunner were all raised in Austria. Additionally, about 13% of the SS and 40% of concentration camp personnel were Austrian.
