The Federal State of Austria ( de-AT, Bundesstaat Österreich;

colloquial Colloquialism (), also called colloquial language, everyday language or general parlance, is the linguistic style used for casual (informal) communication. It is the most common functional style of speech, the idiom normally employed in conve ...

ly known as the , "Corporate State") was a continuation of the

First Austrian Republic The First Austrian Republic (german: Erste Österreichische Republik), officially the Republic of Austria, was created after the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye on 10 September 1919—the settlement after the end of World War I w ...

between 1934 and 1938 when it was a

one-party state A one-party state, single-party state, one-party system, or single-party system is a type of sovereign state in which only one political party has the right to form the government, usually based on the existing constitution. All other partie ...

led by the clerical fascist Fatherland Front. The concept, derived from the notion of ("

estates Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representati ...

" or "

corporations A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

"), was advocated by leading regime politicians such as Engelbert Dollfuss and Kurt Schuschnigg. The result was an authoritarian government based on a mix of Italian Fascist and conservative

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

influences. It ended in March 1938 with the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germa ...

(the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

annexation of Austria). Austria would not become an independent country again until 1955, when the

Austrian State Treaty The Austrian State Treaty (german: Österreichischer Staatsvertrag ) or Austrian Independence Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state. It was signed on 15 May 1955 in Vienna, at the Schloss Belvedere among the Allied occupying p ...

ended the

Allied occupation of Austria The Allied occupation of Austria started on 8 May 1945 with the fall of Nazi Germany and ended with the Austrian State Treaty on 27 July 1955. After the in 1938, Austria had generally been recognized as part of Nazi Germany. In 1943, howeve ...

History

In the 1890s, the founding members of the conservative-clerical Christian Social Party (CS) like

Karl von Vogelsang Karl Freiherr von Vogelsang (3 September 1818 – 8 November 1890), a journalist, politician and Catholic social reformer, was one of the mentors of the Christian Social movement in Austria-Hungary. Life He was born in Liegnitz in the Silesi ...

and the

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

mayor Karl Lueger had already developed anti- liberal views, though primarily from an economic perspective considering the pauperization of the proletariat and the lower middle class. Strongly referring to the doctrine of

Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching, commonly abbreviated CST, is an area of Catholic doctrine concerning matters of human dignity and the common good in society. The ideas address oppression, the role of the state, subsidiarity, social organizatio ...

, the CS agitated against the Austrian

labour movement The labour movement or labor movement consists of two main wings: the trade union movement (British English) or labor union movement (American English) on the one hand, and the political labour movement on the other. * The trade union movement ...

led by the Social Democratic Party of Austria.

Self-coup

During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

in the

of the early 1930s, the CS on the basis of the '' Quadragesimo anno'' encyclical issued by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City f ...

in 1931 pursued the idea of overcoming the ongoing

class struggle Class conflict, also referred to as class struggle and class warfare, is the political tension and economic antagonism that exists in society because of socio-economic competition among the social classes or between rich and poor. The form ...

by the implementation of a corporative form of government modelled on Italian fascism and Portugal’s Estado Novo. The CS politician Engelbert Dollfuss, appointed Chancellor of Austria in 1932, on 4 March 1933 saw an opportunity in the resignation of Social Democrat

Karl Renner Karl Renner (14 December 1870 – 31 December 1950) was an Austrian politician and jurist of the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria. He is often referred to as the "Father of the Republic" because he led the first government of German ...

as president of the Austrian '' Nationalrat'', after irregularities occurred during a voting process. Dollfuss called the incident a "self-elimination" (''Selbstausschaltung'') of the parliament and had the following meeting on 15 March forcibly prorogued by the forces of the Vienna police department. His fellow CS party member, President Wilhelm Miklas, analogous to

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

's victory in the German elections of 5 March 1933 did not take any action to restore democracy. Chancellor Dollfuss then governed by emergency decree, banning the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel ...

on 26 May 1933, the Social Democratic '' Republikanischer Schutzbund'' paramilitary organization on 30 May and the Austrian branch of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

on 19 June. On 20 May 1933 he had established the

Fatherland's Front The Fatherland Front ( de-AT, Vaterländische Front, ''VF'') was the right-wing conservative, nationalist and corporatist ruling political organisation of the Federal State of Austria. It claimed to be a nonpartisan movement, and aimed to unite ...

as a unity party of "an autonomous, Christian, German, corporative Federal State of Austria". On 12 February 1934 the government's attempts to enforce the ban of the ''Schutzbund'' at the

Hotel Schiff The Hotel Schiff is a hotel in Linz. In 1934 it was the starting point of the Austrian Civil War. The ''Gasthof Zum Goldenen Schiff'' was built in 1788 on a site which had been used since 1563 by the Brethren of the Poor. Cinema The ''Hotel zum ...

Linz Linz ( , ; cs, Linec) is the capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria. In the north of the country, it is on the Danube south of the Czech border. In 2018, the population was 204,846. In 2009, it was a European Capital ...

sparked the

Austrian Civil War The Austrian Civil War (german: Österreichischer Bürgerkrieg), also known as the February Uprising (german: Februarkämpfe), was a few days of skirmishes between Austrian government and socialist forces between 12 and 16 February 1934, in Aust ...

. The revolt was suppressed with support by the Bundesheer and right-wing '' Heimwehr'' troops under

Ernst Rüdiger Starhemberg Prince Ernst Rüdiger Camillo von Starhemberg, often known simply as Prince Starhemberg, ( Eferding, 10 May 1899 – Schruns, 15 March 1956) was an Austrian nationalist and politician who helped introduce austrofascism and install a clerical f ...

, and ended with the ban of the Social Democratic Party and the trade unions. The path to dictatorship was completed on 1 May 1934, when the Constitution of Austria was recast into a severely authoritarian document by a rump National Council. Dollfuss continued to rule by emergency measures until his assassination on 25 July 1934 during the Nazi July Putsch. Although the ''coup d'état'' initially had the encouragement of Hitler, it was quickly suppressed and Dollfuss's education minister, Kurt Schuschnigg, succeeded him. Hitler officially denied any involvement in the failed ''coup'', but he continued to destabilise the Austrian state by secretly supporting Nazi sympathisers like Arthur Seyss-Inquart and Edmund Glaise-Horstenau. In turn Austria under Schuschnigg sought the backing of its southern neighbour, the fascist Italian dictator

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in ...

. Tables turned after the

Second Italo-Abyssinian War The Second Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, was a war of aggression which was fought between Italy and Ethiopia from October 1935 to February 1937. In Ethiopia it is often referred to simply as the Ita ...

of 1935–36, when Mussolini, internationally isolated, approached Hitler. Though Schuschnigg tried to improve relations with Nazi Germany by amnestying several Austrian Nazis and accepting them in the Fatherland's Front, he had no chance to prevail against the " axis" of

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

proclaimed by Mussolini on 1 November 1936. One of the reasons for the failure of the putsch was Italian intervention: Mussolini assembled an army corps of four divisions on the Austrian border and threatened Hitler with a war with Italy in the event of a German invasion of Austria as originally planned, should the coup have been more successful. Support for the Nazi movement in Austria was surpassed only by that in Germany, allegedly amounting to 75% in some areas.

Ideology

The Federal State of Austria glorified the history of Austria. The Habsburg Monarchy was elevated as a time of greatness in Austrian history. The Catholic Church played a large role in the nation's definition of Austrian history and identity, which served to alienate German culture. Unlike Hitler's comparatively secular regime, the Catholic Church was given a prominent voice in a variety of issues. In education, the state de-secularized schools, requiring religious education in order to complete the ''Matura'' graduation exams. According to this ideology, Austrians were "better

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

". In keeping with the regime's Catholicism, the regime elevated the non-communist and non-capitalist teachings of Papal Encyclicals, most prominently '' Quadragesimo anno.'' Generally, Dollfuss, completely opposed to Nazi ideology, claimed he wanted to "Out-Hitler" Hitler. Despite its nominal embrace of corporatism and shunning of liberal capitalism, the Federal State pursued a remarkably capitalistic monetary policy, in contrast to Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Capitalist economist

Ludwig von Mises Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises (; 29 September 1881 – 10 October 1973) was an Austrian School economist, historian, logician, and sociologist. Mises wrote and lectured extensively on the societal contributions of classical liberalism. He is ...

, who had collaborated with Dollfuss before the coup, was made chairman of the

Austrian Chamber of Commerce The Austrian Federal Economic Chamber ( de: ''Wirtschaftskammer Österreich'' or WKO) functions as the federal parent organization for the nine State Chambers and 110 trade associations for different industries within Austria's system of economy. ...

, and with the guidance of Mises and other economists, the Federal State pursued a vigorous policy of austerity in reaction to the Great Depression. The Federal State pursued harsh deflationary policies to balance the currency. It also cut spending drastically, and high interest rates were the norm. The budget deficit was slashed from over 200 million shillings to less than 50 million. By 1936, only 50% of the unemployed were receiving unemployment benefits. These policies coincided with a catastrophic economic contraction. According to Angus Maddison's estimates, unemployment peaked at 26% in 1933, failing to fall under 20% until 1937. This can be contrasted with German unemployment, which peaked at 30% in 1932 and had fallen to less than 5% by 1937. Additionally, real GDP collapsed, not returning to pre-1929 levels until 1937. Whether the Federal State could be considered genuinely fascist is debatable. Although it was authoritarian in nature and used fascist-like symbols, it never achieved broad support among Austrians. Its most prominent policy was an embrace of Catholicism, and its economic and social policies bear an only passing resemblance to those of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany.

Civil rights

John Gunther wrote in 1940 that the state "assaulted the rights of citizens in a fantastic manner", noting that in 1934 the police raided 106,000 homes in Vienna and made 38,141 arrests of Nazis, social democrats, liberals and communists. He added, however:

Anschluss

According to the Hossbach Memorandum, Hitler in November 1937 declared his plans for an Austrian campaign in a meeting with

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

commanders. Under the mediation of the German ambassador

Franz von Papen Franz Joseph Hermann Michael Maria von Papen, Erbsälzer zu Werl und Neuwerk (; 29 October 18792 May 1969) was a German conservative politician, diplomat, Prussian nobleman and General Staff officer. He served as the chancellor of Germany ...

, Schuschnigg on 12 February 1938 traveled to Hitler's Berghof residence in Berchtesgaden, only to be confronted with an ultimatum to readmit the Nazi Party and to appoint Seyss-Inquart and Glaise-Horstenau ministers of the Austrian cabinet. Schuschnigg, impressed by the presence of OKW chief General Wilhelm Keitel, gave in and on 16 February Seyss-Inquart became head of the strategically important Austrian

interior ministry An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministr ...

. After the British ambassador to Berlin, Nevile Henderson on 3 March 1938 had stated that the German claims to Austria were justified, Schuschnigg started a last attempt to retain Austrian autonomy by scheduling a nationwide referendum on 13 March. As part of his effort to ensure victory, he released the Social Democratic leaders from prison and gained their support in return for dismantling the one-party state and legalizing the socialist trade unions. Hitler reacted with the mobilization of Wehrmacht troops at the Austrian border and demanded the appointment of Seyss-Inquart as Austrian chancellor. On 11 March Austrian Nazis stormed the Federal Chancellery and forced Schuschnigg to resign. Seyss-Inquart was sworn in as his successor by Miklas and the next day Wehrmacht troops crossed the border meeting no resistance. Hitler had originally intended to retain Austria as a puppet state headed by Seyss-Inquart. However, the enthusiastic support for Hitler led him to change his stance and support a full ''

'' between Austria and Nazi Germany. On 13 March Seyss-Inquart formally decreed the ''Anschluss'', though President Miklas avoided signing the law by resigning immediately. Seyss-Inquart then took over most of Miklas' duties and signed the Anschluss bill into law. Two days later in his speech at the Vienna Heldenplatz, Hitler proclaimed the "accession of my homeland to the German Reich" (see

Austria in the time of National Socialism Austria under Nazism describes the period of Austrian history from 12 March 1938 when Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany (the event is commonly known as ''Anschluss'') until 8 May 1945 with the fall of Nazi Germany. Austrians were generally e ...

History

Self-coup

Ideology

Civil rights

Anschluss

References

Further reading