Austrian Nazism

Origins

Franko Stein from Eger (now Cheb, Czech Republic) and an apprentice bookbinder Ludwig Vogel from Brüx (now Most, Czech Republic), organised the Deutschnationaler Arbeiterbund (German National Workers' League) in 1893. It was a collection of labourers, apprentices, and trade unionists from the railroads, mines, and textile industries, who upheld nationalism as a result of their conflicts with the non-German-speaking portions of the workforce, especially in the railway systems. In 1899, Stein was able to convene a workers' congress in Eger and promulgated a 25-point program.

Another convention was called in April 1902, under the title of "German-Political Workers' Association for Austria" (), in Saaz. In Aussig, on 15 November 1903, they reorganized under the name of the "German Workers' Party in Austria" (). At further party congresses, Hans Knirsch proposed to call themselves the "Nationalsozialistische" (National-Socialist) or "Deutsch-Soziale" (German-social) Workers' Party. The Bohemian groups blocked the proposal, who did not want to copy the name of the Czech National Social Party. An early member of this group is Ferdinand Burschowsky, a printer from Hohenstadt (Moravia), who was active in writing and publishing.

DNSAP

At a party congress in Vienna in May 1918, the DAP changed its name to the Deutsche Nationalsozialistische Arbeiterpartei (DNSAP). It produced a National Socialist Program, which is thought to have influenced the later German Nazi manifesto. From 1920, the swastika was added as the party symbol. Before 1920, it consisted of a hammer, oak leaves and a quill.

The Austrian DNSAP split into several factions in 1923 and again in 1926, the Deutschsozialer Verein (German-Social Association) led by Dr. Walter Riehl, the Schulz-Gruppe,{{citation|surname1=Dirk Hänisch|title=Die österreichischen NSDAP-Wähler: Eine empirische Analyse ihrer politischen Herkunft und ihres Sozialprofils|series=Böhlaus Zeitgeschichtliche Bibliothek 35 Helmut Konrad|publisher=Böhlau|publication-place=Wien / Köln / Weimar|at=pp. 71 f.|isbn=3-205-98714-4|date=1998|language=German

According to fascism scholar Stanley G. Payne, if elections had been held in 1933, the DNSAP might have mustered about 25% of the votes. Contemporary Time magazine analysts suggested a higher support of 50%, with a 75% approval rate in the Tyrol region bordering Nazi Germany.

Leaders of the party, who were dubbed Landesleiter due to the recognition of Hitler as overall Führer, included Alfred Proksch (1931–33), Hermann Neubacher (1935) and Josef Leopold (1936–38), although real power frequently lay with Theodor Habicht, a German sent by Hitler to oversee Nazi activity in Austria.

Election results

;Notes

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Rees, Philip (1990) Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Whiteside, Andrew Gladding (1962) Austrian National Socialism Before 1918. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff.

Further reading

• Pauley, Bruce F. (1981) Hitler and the Forgotten Nazis: A History of Austrian National Socialism. Chapel Hill, North CarolinaL University of North Carolina Press.

References

1. Rees (1990), p. 305
2. Rees (1990), p. 169
3. Rees (1990), p. 229
4. Parkinson, F. (1989) ''Conquering the Past: Austrian Nazism Yesterday and Today''. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. p. 49. {{ISBN. 978-0-8143-2055-6
5. "Austrian Nazis Are Outlawed", [[Montreal Gazette]], (June 20, 1933), p. 1.
6. Lauridsen, John T. (2007) ''Nazism and the Radical Right in Austria, 1918–1934''. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press. p. 283 {{ISBN. 978-87-635-0221-4
7. Whiteside (1962), pp. 1–3
8. Nicholls, David (2000) ''Adolf Hitler: A Biographical Companion''. ABC-CLIO. pp. 236–37. {{ISBN. 978-0-87436-965-6
9. Wladika, Michael. (2005). "Hitlers Vätergeneration: Die Ursprünge des Nationalsozialismus in der k.u.k. Monarchie". Böhlau Verlag.
10. Wladika, Michael. (2005). "Hitlers Vätergeneration: Die Ursprünge des Nationalsozialismus in der k.u.k. Monarchie". Böhlau Verlag.
11. David Nicholls. ''Adolf Hitler: A Biographical Companion''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2000. pp. 236–37.
12. Voithofer, Richard (2000) ''"Drum schliesst Euch frisch an Deutschland an …". Die Grossdeutsche Volkspartei in Salzburg 1920–1936'' Böhlau, Wien/Köln/Weimar. pp. 188–198
13. Kirk, Timothy. (1996). "Nazism and the Working Class in Austria". Cambridge University Press.
14. Jungcurt, Uta (2016). ''Alldeutscher Extremismus in der Weimarer Republik. Denken und Handeln einer einflussreichen Minderheit.'' Berlin: De Gruyter. p. 150
15. [https://arplan.org/2019/10/17/german-national-socialist-workers-party ("National Socialists Before Hitler, Part IV: The German National Socialist Workers' Party (DNSAP)")]
16. aieou: http://www.aeiou.at/aeiou.encyclop.n/n122448.htm Nationalsozialismus
17. {{ANNO. svb. 6. 9. 1926. 1. Der Zwist der Nationalsozialisten
18. (September 25, 1933). "Austria: Eve of Renewal".