Ruqayyah Snyder
On March 12, 1938, Adolf Hitler accompanied German troops into Austria, where they were met with enthusiastic crowds. This annexation of Austria, known as the Anschluss, was the Nazi regime's first act of territorial aggression and expansion. Hitler's move from his country of birth to Germany was driven by his ideology of German nationalism and his objective to annex Austria, as outlined in his 1925 book, Mein Kampf. In it, he wrote, German-Austria must return to the great German motherland... Common blood belongs in a common Reich.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of Annexation | 13 March 1938 |
| Hitler's First Objective | Annexation of Austria |
| Hitler's Plan | To unite Austria and Germany into one "common Reich" |
| Hitler's Strategy | To threaten invasion of Austria if his demands were not met |
| German Troops | Entered Austria on 12 March 1938 |
| Austrian Nazis | Conspired to seize the Austrian government and unite with Nazi Germany |
| Austrian Chancellor | Kurt von Schuschnigg |
| Plebiscite | Called by Schuschnigg to resolve the question of annexation |
| Result | Schuschnigg resigned and appointed Arthur Seyss-Inquart, an Austrian Nazi, as his replacement |
| International Reaction | The international community did not intervene or punish Nazi Germany for violating international treaties |
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What You'll Learn
Hitler's expansionist policies
Hitler's expansionism began with the annexation of Austria in 1938, known as the Anschluss. This was achieved through the conspiracy of Austrian Nazis, who seized the Austrian government by force, and the bullying of Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg into naming top Austrian Nazis to his cabinet. Hitler then threatened to invade Austria, leading to Schuschnigg's resignation and the appointment of a Nazi government. German troops entered Austria on March 12, 1938, and were met with enthusiasm by most Austrians.
Hitler's aggressive expansionism was not a secret, and it ultimately led to the outbreak of World War II in September 1939. Great Britain and France attempted to prevent the war through a policy of appeasement, giving in to Hitler's demands. Nazi propaganda also played a role in selling the Munich Agreement as one of Hitler's successful peace policies.
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Austria's annexation
The Lead-up to the Annexation
In early 1938, Austrian Nazis, for the second time in four years, conspired to seize the Austrian government by force and unite with Nazi Germany. Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg, upon learning of the conspiracy, met with Nazi leader Adolf Hitler to reassert his country's independence. However, he was coerced into naming several top Austrian Nazis to his cabinet. On March 9, 1938, Schuschnigg called for a national referendum to resolve the question of the annexation once and for all.
Hitler, infuriated by the plebiscite, threatened to invade Austria and demanded Schuschnigg's resignation. On March 11, facing pressure from the Germans, Schuschnigg cancelled the plebiscite and resigned. He pleaded with Austrian forces not to resist a German "advance" into the country.
The Annexation
On March 12, Hitler accompanied German troops into Austria, where they were met with enthusiastic crowds. Hitler appointed a new Nazi government, and on March 13, the annexation was officially proclaimed. Austria became a federal state of Germany and existed as such until the end of World War II.
Aftermath
Throughout World War II, 950,000 Austrians fought for the Nazi German armed forces, and others participated in the Nazi administration, including senior Nazi leadership. After the war, many Austrians sought comfort in the myth that Austria was the first victim of the Nazis. While the Nazi Party was banned, Austria did not undergo the same denazification process as post-war Germany.
Historical Context
The idea of uniting Austria and Germany was not new and dated back to the 19th century. However, the peace treaties that ended World War I expressly forbade such a union due to concerns about the potential power of a united Germany and Austria. Hitler and the Nazis wanted to redraw the map of post-World War I Europe, considering the existing international borders unfair and illegitimate. They claimed that Germans had been denied the right of self-determination, and redrawing the borders would allow them to achieve their expansionist goals.
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Hitler's influence in Austria
Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, Austria-Hungary (present-day Austria) in 1889. When he was three years old, his family moved to Germany, but in 1893, his father was transferred to Linz, Austria, where Hitler received a secondary education.
Hitler's early life in Austria, where antisemitism was prevalent, likely influenced his own antisemitic beliefs. In 1903, the German Workers' Party was founded in Bohemia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The party supported German nationalism and anti-clericalism, and by 1909, it had gained a new leader, Walter Riehl, and a new name: the German National Socialist Workers' Party (Deutsche Nationalsozialistische Arbeiterpartei; DNSAP). After World War I, the party split into a Czechoslovakian party and an Austrian party under Riehl. In 1923, Riehl's party had about 23,000 members, but it was still a marginal factor in Austrian politics. In 1926, Richard Suchenwirth founded the Austrian branch of Hitler's German National Socialist party in Vienna.
Hitler became the leader of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei; NSDAP) in 1921. In the 1927 General Election, the Austrian National Socialists linked to Hitler (Nazis) received only 779 votes. In the 1930 General Election, the Austrian National Socialists received 3.6% of the votes and failed to enter Parliament. However, after 1930, Hitler's NSDAP doubled its membership every year due to the economic crisis, using slogans such as, "500,000 Unemployed – 400,000 Jews – Simple way out; vote National Socialist".
Hitler and the Nazis considered the postwar international borders unfair and illegitimate, claiming that Germans had been denied the right of self-determination. They wanted to redraw Europe's borders, and the annexation of Austria was a crucial step in achieving this goal. In 1936, Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg signed an agreement with German ambassador Franz von Papen, in which Schuschnigg agreed to the release of Nazis imprisoned in Austria and Germany promised to respect Austrian sovereignty. However, this did not satisfy Hitler, and in 1937, he told Goebbels that Austria would have to be taken "by force". In March 1938, Austrian Nazis conspired to seize the Austrian government and unite with Nazi Germany. Schuschnigg met with Hitler in an attempt to reassert his country's independence, but he was coerced into naming several top Austrian Nazis to his cabinet and calling a national vote to resolve the question of Anschluss, or "annexation". Before the vote could take place, Schuschnigg resigned under pressure from Hitler, and on March 12, 1938, German troops entered Austria, where they were met with enthusiastic crowds. Hitler appointed a new Nazi government, and on March 13, the Anschluss was proclaimed. Austria existed as a federal state of Germany until the end of World War II, when the Allied powers declared the Anschluss void and reestablished an independent Austria.
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The Austrian Nazi Party
Austrian Nazism, or Austrian National Socialism, was a pan-German movement that took shape in the early 20th century. The German Worker's Party (DAP) was established in Austria in 1903, advocating German nationalism and anti-clericalism. In 1909, Walter Riehl joined the party and became its leader in 1918, renaming it the German National Socialist Workers' Party (DNSAP). After World War I, the party split into Czechoslovakian and Austrian factions, with the latter cooperating closely with the German National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) led by Adolf Hitler from 1921.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Austrian Nazi Party was weak, divided, and internally conflicted about their relationship with Hitler and the German Nazis. However, by 1931, most Austrian Nazis recognised Hitler as their leader, and the party's popularity grew as Hitler rose to power in Germany. In 1933, Engelbert Dollfuss, the Austrian chancellor, banned the Austrian Nazi Party and its affiliates, forcing many Austrian Nazis to flee to Germany, where they formed the paramilitary Austrian Legion. Despite the ban, the Austrian Nazis continued to operate clandestinely, and in 1934, they attempted a coup against the Austrian government.
In 1936, facing increasing pressure from Germany and Italy, Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg signed an agreement with Germany, releasing imprisoned Nazis and promising to follow Germany's lead in foreign policy. In March 1938, Austrian Nazis conspired to seize the Austrian government and unite with Nazi Germany. Hitler threatened to invade Austria, forcing Schuschnigg to resign and appoint the Nazi Arthur Seyss-Inquart as chancellor. On March 12, 1938, German troops entered Austria, where they were met with enthusiasm by the Austrian population. Austria became a federal state of Germany, and the process of Nazification began, with Austrians enthusiastically adopting Nazi policies and persecuting the country's Jewish population.
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The international community's response
Winston Churchill, however, was vocal about his belief that countries should take "effective measures" to respond to Germany's aggression. He was critical of the passive response to Hitler's takeover of Austria, and some historians have argued that the international community's failure to act enabled Hitler's aggressive foreign policy.
The Austrian historian Alfred D. Low offers one possible explanation for the lack of international response. He suggests that one of the reasons Germany did not allow a plebiscite to be held by the Austrian government was that the Nazi regime feared defeat at the polls. Low states that in 1938, there was "majority support for Austria's independence," indicating that the annexation may not have been supported by the Austrian people.
In addition, the Anschluss sparked Catholic protests in Austria under the slogan "Our Führer is Christ," indicating religious opposition to Hitler's regime. However, these protests did not seem to have a significant impact on the international community's response.
Overall, the international community's passive response to the annexation of Austria enabled Hitler's expansionist agenda and set a precedent for appeasement that would shape the early years of World War II.
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Frequently asked questions
Hitler was born in Austria and moved to Germany as a young man. He later became the leader of the German National Socialist Workers' Party (NSDAP). In 1938, he invaded Austria and annexed it into Nazi Germany, an act known as the Anschluss.
The Anschluss was the Nazi regime's first act of territorial aggression and expansion, violating the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain. It demonstrated Hitler's expansionary policies and his disdain for the post-World War I European order.
The international community did not intervene to stop the Anschluss or punish Nazi Germany for violating international treaties. Their acceptance of the annexation was seen as a significant act of appeasement, allowing Hitler to continue his aggressive foreign policy unchecked.
Most Austrians supported the Anschluss, and many enthusiastically participated in the Nazification of Austrian life. However, there were also Austrian resistance groups, and some Austrians faced persecution under the Nazi regime.
