Anschluss: Difference between revisions

By the 1920s, the {{lang|de|Anschluss}} proposal had strong support in both Austria and Germany,{{sfn|Bukey|2002|p=11}} particularly to many Austrian citizens of the political left and center. One vehement supporter was [[Otto Bauer]], the prominent Social Democrat leader who served as Austria's Foreign Minister after the war. Support for unification with Germany came mainly from the belief that Austria, stripped of its imperial land, was not viable economically.<ref name="shepherd1">{{cite book|last=Brook-Shepherd |first=Gordon |title=Anschluss: The Rape of Austria |date=1963 |pages=15 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |doi=10.1007/978-1-349-81667-5 |isbn=978-1-349-81669-9 }}</ref> However, popular support for the unification faded with time, although it remained as a concept in the contemporary Austrian political discourse.<ref name="shepherd2">{{cite book|last=Brook-Shepherd |first=Gordon |title=Anschluss: The Rape of Austria |date=1963 |pages=16 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |doi=10.1007/978-1-349-81667-5 |isbn=978-1-349-81669-9 }}</ref>

 

 

In early 1938, under increasing pressure from pro-unification activists, Austrian chancellor [[Kurt Schuschnigg]] announced that there would be a referendum on a possible union with Germany versus maintaining Austria's sovereignty to be held on 13 March. Portraying this as defying the popular will in Austria and Germany, Hitler threatened an invasion and secretly pressured Schuschnigg to resign. A day before the planned referendum, on 12 March, the [[German Army (1935–1945)|German Army]] crossed the border into Austria, unopposed by the Austrian military. [[1938 Austrian Anschluss referendum|A plebiscite]] was held on 10 April, in which the ballot was not secret, and threats and coercion were employed to manipulate the vote, resulting in 99.7% approval for the Anschluss.