Lexi Webster
Germany and Austria have a long shared history, with the two countries united under the Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution in 1806. Despite their similarities, the two nations have developed distinct identities over time, influenced by factors such as religion and language. The rise of Napoleon and his conquest of German-speaking territories played a pivotal role in shaping the future of both countries. While Austria became an empire in its own right, Prussia emerged as a third Germany, and the Confederation of the Rhine further contributed to the independence of German states. The infamous German question of unification loomed large, with Austria's Catholic majority and special relationship with the Vatican setting it apart from a largely secular Germany. Despite sharing a language and a history that includes annexation during World War II, Austria and Germany remain separate nations, with Austria asserting its independence and neutrality post-World War II.
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What You'll Learn
The rise of Napoleon and his conquest of German-speaking territory
The rise of Napoleon Bonaparte and his conquest of German-speaking territory played a significant role in shaping the separation of Germany and Austria. Before the Napoleonic Wars, Germany was divided into numerous independent states and cities, with the German people lacking a strong sense of national identity. However, Napoleon's campaigns in Central Europe had a profound impact on the region's political landscape.
Napoleon's forces were incredibly successful, conquering large swathes of mainland Europe, including German states. In 1806, the young Napoleon forced Austria to accept the loss of territories on the left bank of the Rhine through the Treaty of Campo Formio. By 1809, the Fifth Coalition, comprising Britain and Austria, was formed against France, with major battles taking place across Europe, including in German territories. Napoleon reorganised Germany into 39 larger states and established the Confederation of the Rhine, a league of 16 German states, bringing further unification to the region.
The rise of Napoleon and his conquest of German-speaking lands had two significant consequences. Firstly, it led to the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, with Austria emerging as an independent empire. Secondly, it created the Confederation of the Rhine, which centralised power in the hands of Prussia and excluded southern German-speaking states. This period marked the emergence of Prussia as a "third Germany". The Confederation, being a Napoleonic creation, was dissolved after Napoleon's defeat at the hands of the Seventh Coalition at Waterloo in 1815.
The Napoleonic Wars and the subsequent subjugation of Europe by Napoleon had a profound impact on the German states. They realised that their small size and political divisions had made them vulnerable to strong aggressors like Napoleon. This spurred the creation of new German confederations that evolved to centralise power and exclude southern German-speaking states. The rise of nationalism during this period further contributed to the growing sense of separate identities between Austria and Germany.
After the Second World War, there was no serious effort to unite Germany and Austria, and the Austrian State Treaty of 1955 forbade such a union. The German identity in Austria was weakened, and only 6% of Austrians identified as Germans in a 1987 survey. Austria developed a distinct national identity, emphasising its independence from Germany, which was formally recognised in 1955 with the establishment of the Second Austrian Republic.
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The dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a powerful monarchy in Central and Western Europe that lasted for a millennium until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. The Holy Roman Empire was a collection of more or less independent kingdoms, lay and ecclesiastical principalities, and free cities.
The decline of the Holy Roman Empire was a long and drawn-out process lasting centuries. The formation of the first modern sovereign territorial states in the 16th and 17th centuries, which brought with it the idea that jurisdiction corresponded to actual territory governed, threatened the universal nature of the Holy Roman Empire. The rise of Napoleon and his conquest of German-speaking territory was another big factor in the decline of the Holy Roman Empire. Napoleon's conquest of Central Europe had two main results: the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, with Austria emerging as an empire in its own right; and the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine, with the independence of the remaining German states no longer under the control of the Holy Roman Empire or the Confederation.
After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, Austria became the Austrian Empire and was part of the German Confederation until the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. In 1867, Austria formed a dual monarchy with Hungary: the Austro-Hungarian Empire. When this empire collapsed after the end of World War I in 1918, Austria was reduced to the main, mostly German-speaking areas of the empire (its current frontiers), and adopted the name, the Republic of German-Austria. However, union with Germany and the chosen country name were forbidden by the Allies at the Treaty of Versailles. This led to the creation of the First Austrian Republic (1919–1933). Following the First Republic, Kurt Schuschnigg and the Fatherland Front tried to keep Austria independent from the German Reich. Engelbert Dollfuss accepted that most Austrians were German and Austrian, but wanted Austria to remain independent from Germany.
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Austria's annexation into Germany in the Anschluss
Austria's annexation into Germany in 1938, known as the Anschluss, was the first act of territorial expansion committed by Nazi Germany. The unification of the two countries had been an integral part of the Nazi "Heim ins Reich" concept, which sought to incorporate as many ethnic Germans outside Germany as possible into a "Greater Germany".
In the early 20th century, the idea of unification was popular among Austrian Social Democrats, who saw it as a solution to the economic turbulence caused by the Great Depression. Austria, rich in raw materials and labour, supplied Germany with magnesium and the products of the iron, textile and machine industries. It also had gold and foreign currency reserves, many unemployed skilled workers, hundreds of idle factories, and large potential hydroelectric resources.
In 1933, Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss was assassinated by Austrian Nazis in a failed coup. Leading Austrian Nazis fled to Germany but continued to push for unification. In 1935, Dollfuss's successor, Kurt Schuschnigg, used the police to suppress Nazi supporters, imprisoning them in internment camps. However, by 1936, the damage to Austria from the German boycott was too great, and Schuschnigg was forced to come to an agreement with Germany. He signed an agreement with German ambassador Franz von Papen, in which he agreed to the release of imprisoned Nazis in exchange for a promise from Germany to respect Austrian sovereignty. Despite this, Hitler continued to threaten an invasion of Austria and, in February 1938, forced Schuschnigg to implement a range of measures favourable to Austrian Nazism.
In early 1938, under increasing pressure from pro-unification activists, Schuschnigg announced that there would be a referendum on a possible union with Germany, to be held on 13 March. However, on 12 March, the Germans crossed the border into Austria, unopposed by the Austrian military. Schuschnigg was pressured to resign, and a day later, on 13 March, Germany invaded. A referendum to ratify the annexation was held on 10 April, preceded by a major propaganda campaign. The vote was not secret, and threats and coercion were employed to manipulate the result, which saw 99.7% approval for the Anschluss.
The Anschluss was widely popular in both Germany and Austria, but it was also a violation of the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain, which expressly forbade the unification of the two countries. The acceptance of the annexation by other European powers was a significant act of appeasement, which allowed Hitler to continue his expansionary policies unchecked.
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Austria's independence and its ban on reunification with Germany
Austria and Germany have a shared history, with German being the official language and Germans being the majority ethnic group of both countries. In the Middle and Early-Modern Ages, the Holy Roman Empire (HRE) encompassed the bulk of present territories of Germany, Austria, Bohemia (Czech Republic), Slovenia, northern Italy and western Poland. The numerous German states (within the HRE) constantly jostled for power and influence; they often went to war against each other. In the 18th century, the Kingdom of Prussia rose as another influential power within the HRE, becoming Austria's main rival for dominance over their neighbouring German states.
Austria became a sovereign state in 1156 and from 1156 to 1806, Austria (not including its non-German lands) and other German states under the Kingdom of Germany were parts of the Holy Roman Empire. The House of Habsburg became the ruling family of the Empire in 1440 and would remain so until the dissolution of the Empire in 1806. Austria has been the seat of power for the Habsburgs and the dominant state within the realm.
In 1864, Austria and Prussia fought together against Denmark and secured the independence from Denmark of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. As they could not agree on how the two duchies should be administered, though, they fought the Austro-Prussian War in 1866. Austria was defeated by Prussia in the Battle of Königgrätz and had to leave the German Confederation, no longer taking part in German politics.
In 1918, several of the minorities within Austria-Hungary (the Czechoslovaks, Yugoslavs, and Hungarians) declared their independence. Emperor Charles I abdicated on November 12, 1918, and an Austrian Republic was proclaimed on November 13, 1918. The United States recognized the Republic of Austria on August 24, 1921, with the signing of a Treaty Establishing Friendly Relations in Vienna.
In 1933, the First Austrian Republic disintegrated when Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss established an autocratic regime tending towards Italian fascism. Rival parties, including the Austrian National Socialists, were banned, and government evolved into a corporatist, one-party government. In 1938, Nazi Germany, led by Austrian-born Adolf Hitler, annexed Austria into Germany in what would come to be called the Anschluss. Austrian-born Hitler had, in fact, written in his 1925 book Mein Kampf that he would create a union between his birth country Austria and Germany by any means possible.
On March 11–13, 1938, German troops occupied Austria and Austrian Nazis took over the government, preventing a referendum on Austrian independence from taking place. The next day, Hitler announced what he called the "reunification" of Austria with the "rest of the German Reich" in Vienna. He established a referendum which confirmed the union with Germany in April 1938. The Anschluss was the Nazi German regime’s first act of territorial aggression and expansion and it resulted in an outburst of public violence against Austria’s Jewish population.
Following the end of World War II, Austria under Allied control claimed independence from Germany on 27 April 1945. A provisional government was established in Austria on April 25, 1945, and a Democratic Republic of Austria was proclaimed on May 14. On August 8, 1945, Austria and Vienna were divided into four occupation zones, with an Allied Council for Austria assuming authority over matters affecting the whole country. On January 7, 1946, the Four Powers recognized the Austrian Republic within its 1937 boundaries.
On May 15, 1955, the Four Powers (the United States, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union) signed the Austrian State Treaty in Vienna, which ended the four-power occupation and declared Austria to be a free, independent, and neutral state. This treaty also banned the reunification of Germany and Austria. In 1995, Austria joined the European Union and its Schengen Area, of which Germany was already a member.
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Austria's separate national identity from Germany
Austria and Germany have a long shared history, with Austria considered part of Germany for most of its past. However, several factors have contributed to the development of a distinct Austrian national identity, separate from that of Germany.
Firstly, the rise of Napoleon and his conquest of German-speaking territories played a pivotal role. The dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, of which Austria was a part, led to the emergence of Austria as an empire in its own right. This marked the beginning of Austria and Germany asserting separate identities.
Secondly, the creation of the German Reich in 1871 by Bismarck, who led the drive for German unification, excluded Austria. This decision was influenced by the religious differences between the two nations, with Germany having a slight Protestant majority, while Austria was predominantly Catholic. This exclusion resulted in Austria and Germany solidifying their distinct identities.
Thirdly, the aftermath of World War II significantly weakened the German identity in Austria. Austrians began to distance themselves from Germany due to the crimes committed by the Nazis during the war. The idea of political union with Germany became unpopular, and a civic Austrian national identity emerged. This shift in sentiment was reflected in a 1987 survey, which showed that only 6% of Austrians identified themselves as Germans.
Additionally, Austria's history of being governed by various empires, such as the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Holy Roman Empire, has contributed to the development of a unique Austrian identity. The influence of these empires, particularly the rivalry between the Austrian and Prussian states within the Holy Roman Empire, shaped the political and cultural landscape of Austria, setting it apart from Germany.
Furthermore, language variations between Austrian German and Standard German have played a role in differentiating the two nations. Differences in pronunciation, vocabulary, and regional dialects, such as the Viennese dialect, have contributed to a sense of linguistic distinctiveness in Austria.
Lastly, Austria's strict constitutional requirement of neutrality, as outlined in the Austrian State Treaty, has further emphasised its separate identity from Germany. While both countries are members of the European Union, Austria's neutrality sets it apart from Germany's membership in NATO.
In summary, the historical events, religious differences, the impact of World War II, linguistic variations, and political distinctions have collectively fostered the evolution of a distinct Austrian national identity, separate from that of Germany.
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Frequently asked questions
Germany and Austria have had a complex shared history, with Austria being part of the German Confederation from 1815 to 1866 and being annexed into Germany under the Nazi regime from 1938 to 1945. However, they have also asserted separate identities over time, with Austria becoming an empire in its own right after Napoleon's conquest of Central Europe. The two countries also differ in religious demographics, with Germany having a slight Protestant majority and Austria being overwhelmingly Catholic.
Napoleon's conquest of German-speaking territories in Central Europe led to the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire (HRE) and the emergence of Austria as an independent empire. This period also saw the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine, which contributed to the growing independence of German states outside the control of the HRE or Confederation.
Germany, at the time of unification efforts, had a slight Protestant majority, while Austria was predominantly Catholic and maintained a special relationship with the Vatican. These religious differences, along with cultural distinctions, influenced the decision to maintain separate states.
Yes, under the Nazi regime from 1938 to 1945, Austria was annexed into Germany in what was known as the Anschluss. This unification was reversed after World War II, and Austria claimed independence from Germany in 1945, with the German identity in Austria being weakened.
No, there has been no serious effort among citizens or political parties to unite Germany and Austria after World War II. The Austrian State Treaty forbids such a union, and Austria's constitution requires neutrality. Austria has developed a separate national identity, and only 6% of Austrians identified as 'Germans' in a 1987 survey.
