Interwar period and World War II Austria

after war, inflation began devalue krone, still austria s currency. in autumn 1922, austria granted international loan supervised league of nations. purpose of loan avert bankruptcy, stabilise currency, , improve austria s general economic condition. loan meant austria passed independent state control exercised league of nations. in 1925, schilling introduced, replacing krone @ rate of 10,000:1. later, nicknamed alpine dollar due stability. 1925 1929, economy enjoyed short high before crashing after black tuesday.

the first austrian republic lasted until 1933, when chancellor engelbert dollfuss, using called self-switch-off of parliament , established autocratic regime tending towards italian fascism. 2 big parties @ time, social democrats , conservatives, had paramilitary armies; social democrats schutzbund declared illegal, still operative civil war broke out.

in february 1934, several members of schutzbund executed, social democratic party outlawed, , many of members imprisoned or emigrated. on 1 may 1934, austrofascists imposed new constitution ( maiverfassung ) cemented dollfuss s power, on 25 july assassinated in nazi coup attempt.

hitler speaking @ heldenplatz, vienna, 1938

his successor kurt schuschnigg acknowledged austria german state , austrians better germans wished austria remain independent. announced referendum on 9 march 1938, held on 13 march, concerning austria s independence germany. on 12 march 1938, austrian nazis took on government, while german troops occupied country, prevented schuschnigg s referendum taking place. on 13 march 1938, anschluss of austria officially declared. 2 days later, austrian-born hitler announced called reunification of home country rest of german reich on vienna s heldenplatz. established plebiscite confirming union germany in april 1938.

parliamentary elections held in germany (including annexed austria) on 10 april 1938. final elections reichstag during nazi rule, , took form of single-question referendum asking whether voters approved of single nazi-party list 813-member reichstag, recent annexation of austria (the anschluss). turnout in election officially 99.5%, 98.9% voting yes . in case of austria, adolf hitler s native soil, 99.71% of electorate of 4,484,475 officially went ballots, positive tally of 99.73%. although austrians favoured anschluss, in parts of austria german soldiers not welcomed flowers , joy, in vienna had austria s largest jewish population. nevertheless, despite propaganda , manipulation , rigging surrounded ballot box result, there massive genuine support hitler fulfilling anschluss, since many germans both austria , germany saw completing long overdue german unification of germans united one-state.

the liberation of mauthausen concentration camp, 1945

on 12 march, austria annexed third reich , ceased exist independent country. aryanisation of wealth of jewish austrians started in mid-march, so-called wild (i.e. extra-legal) phase, structured legally , bureaucratically strip jewish citizens of assets possessed. nazis called austria ostmark until 1942, when again renamed , called alpen-donau-reichsgaue .

though austrians made 8% of population of third reich, of prominent nazis native austrians, including adolf hitler, ernst kaltenbrunner, arthur seyss-inquart, franz stangl, , odilo globocnik, on 13% of ss , 40% of staff @ nazi extermination camps. vienna fell on 13 april 1945, during soviet vienna offensive, before total collapse of third reich. invading allied powers, in particular americans, planned supposed alpine fortress operation of national redoubt, largely have taken place on austrian soil in mountains of eastern alps. however, never materialised because of rapid collapse of reich.

karl renner , adolf schärf (socialist party of austria [social democrats , revolutionary socialists]), leopold kunschak (austria s people s party [former christian social people s party]), , johann koplenig (communist party of austria) declared austria s secession third reich declaration of independence on 27 april 1945 , set provisional government in vienna under state chancellor renner same day, approval of victorious red army , backed joseph stalin. (the date officially named birthday of second republic.) @ end of april, of western , southern austria still under nazi rule. on 1 may 1945, federal constitution of 1929, had been terminated dictator dollfuss on 1 may 1934, declared valid again.

total military deaths 1939 1945 estimated @ 260,000. jewish holocaust victims totalled 65,000. 140,000 jewish austrians had fled country in 1938–39. thousands of austrians had taken part in serious nazi crimes (hundreds of thousands died in mauthausen-gusen concentration camp alone), fact officially recognised chancellor franz vranitzky in 1992.