Appeasement And The Road To War #13: Anschluss Flashcards
What happened at the Treaty of St-Germain?
Austria was spared from any punishment at Versailles
How was Austria affected after Versailles?
- Reduced to a small state with all empires taken away and new independent states created
- There was to be no Anschluss
What did Article 80 of the ToV state?
- It forbid the union of German and Austria
- There was to be no “Anschluss” or “Greater Germany”
How did Pan Germans feel in January 1933 when Hitler came to power?
They believed their dream of a United German State would soon become a reality
Pan-German
A movement having as its principal aim the political union of all Germans
Why did Austrian Nazis murder Chancellor Dolfuss in July 1934?
Convinced the Anschluss was about to happen, they believed that Germany would charge in and take over Austria
When was Chancellor Dolfuss murdered?
July 1934
What did Mussolini do in retaliation to the murder of Chancellor Dolfuss?
Seeing himself as Austria’s protector, he sent 4 divisions of Italian troops to the Brenner Pass (border between Italy and Austria) and threatened to invade Austria and impose his own control - even if that meant kicking the Germans out
Why did Hitler back away from Austria after Mussolini stationed troops on the Italy-Austria border?
- He liked to be in control and things were getting out of hand
- The timing was all wrong and he could see his ‘enemies’ were united against him
What did Hitler do after withdrawing from Austria in 1934?
- Declared his peaceful intentions towards Austria
- Purged the Austrian Nazi Party
- Let the situation tick over
What made Mussolini realise he couldn’t keep ordering Hitler around?
Italy becoming involved other things such as Abyssinia and the Spanish Civil War
What were chief reasons for Hitler bringing about the union of Germany and Austria?
- The ideas of “Germanness” and race
- He was Austrian by birth and May have felt that this was his duty
What factors would encourage Hitler to achieve the Anschluss?
Geographical: control of Danube river basin, railway access to the Balkans, the surrounding of Czechoslovakia
Military/Economic: powerful additional resources
Who was the new Austrian Chancellor after the failed Anschluss?
Kurt von Schuschnigg
What did Schuschnigg let be known by February 1938?
That he wanted to see Hitler to see if the Nazi leader could control the Austrian Nazis who frequently disrupted orderly government via bomb attacks and mass demonstrations
Where did Hitler summon Schuschnigg to?
The Berghof and Berchtesgaden - Hitler’s summer retreat in the alps
When did Hitler and Schuschnigg meet at Berchtesgaden?
12 February 1938
What did Hitler do at Berchtesgaden?
Hitler turned the situation around and displayed temper, verbal aggression and threats which was really out of order at a meeting of 2 national leaders.