Franz Muhri (1924–2001) was a politician who headed the

Communist Party of Austria The Communist Party of Austria (, KPÖ) is a communist party in Austria. Established in 1918 as the Communist Party of Republic of German-Austria, German-Austria (KPDÖ), it is one of the world's oldest Communist party, communist parties. The KP� ...

between 1965 and 1990.

Early life and education

Muhri was born in

Steyregg Steyregg is a municipality in the district of Urfahr-Umgebung in the Austrian state of Upper Austria. History The first settlements in the Steyregg area were established during the Neolithic period, as evidenced by archaeological excavations. A ...

Upper Austria Upper Austria ( ; ; ) is one of the nine States of Austria, states of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg (state), Salzbur ...

, on 21 October 1924. He completed his primary school education worked in various jobs. He attended evening courses on typing and bookkeeping. He joined the resistance movement after Austria was

annexed Annexation, in international law, is the forcible acquisition and assertion of legal title over one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. In current international law, it is generally held to ...

to Nazi Germany in March 1938.

Career and activities

Feuerhalle Simmering - Urnenhain - Franz Muhri

Muhri worked as a construction worker in Graz until 1942 when he was drafted into the army, but he escaped from the city and went underground in western

Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...

until the end of World War II. He joined the Communist Party in 1945 when it was reestablished. He served as the district secretary of the party in

Mödling Mödling () is the capital of the Austrian Mödling (district), district of the same name located approximately 15 km south of Vienna. Mödling lies in Lower Austria's industrial zone (Industrieviertel). The Mödlingbach, a brook which rises ...

in the 1950s. Muhri was elected as the chairman of the party in 1965 succeeding Johann Koplenig in the post. One of the most significant incidents during Muhri's tenure was the expulsion of progressive party members, including Franz Marek and Ernst Fischer, in late 1960s. Muhri participated some congresses of the

Soviet Communist Party The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

, including the

27th Congress The 27th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., between March 4, ...

held in 1986. He led the party until 1990. He retired from politics the same year.

Views

Muhri was part of the moderate group within the Communist Party when he was elected as party leader in 1965. However, he began to collaborate with the conservative group within the party from the 21st Party Congress in May 1970. He argued in his speech at the European Communist Parties Conference held in East Berlin in June 1976 that the Soviet Union was the most powerful socialist state and a major drive for peace. The Communist Party under the leadership of Muhri did not endorse the

invasion of Czechoslovakia On 20–21 August 1968, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was jointly invaded by four fellow Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, the Polish People's Republic, the People's Republic of Bulgaria, and the Hungarian People's Republic. The in ...

by the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in 1968. He himself stated that the invasion was harmful to the entire communist movement. However, the party adopted a much more hard line approach from 1970. It supported the reforms declared by the Soviet leader

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

Personal life, work and death

Muhri had a daughter. He was published a book entitled ''Kein Ende der Geschichte'' () dated 1995. Muhri died of cancer in Vienna on 7 September 2001 at the age of 76.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Muhri, Franz 20th-century Austrian politicians 20th-century Austrian writers 1924 births 2001 deaths Communist Party of Austria politicians Deaths from cancer in Austria People from Urfahr-Umgebung District Austrian resistance members