Biographical/Historical Information
After the First World War, the Germans of the Reich and the Austrians expressed the will to unite. The Entente put a stop to the Anschluss movement, but Hitler revived the idea. In the spring of 1938, the authoritarian Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg had wanted to have Austria's sovereignty confirmed by a referendum. Hitler instead ordered military occupation of Austria on March 12, 1938. The Germans were not well received by the Austrian population-- in Vienna alone 67,000 people were arrested. In turn, freedom of the press in Austria was abolished. The Austrian Sturmabteilung legion returning from Germany undertook a revenge campaign with pogroms. In the general rush of joy over the "homecoming", the riots were hardly noticed. The referendum of April 10, 1938, on the annexation of Austria was coupled with the election of a new Reichstag with a single list: Those who wanted to vote for the annexation of Austria automatically re-elected the NSDAP government. The election result was over 99% yes votes.
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Citation
Ja!, Leo Baeck Institute, r (f) DD 232.5 A7 1963 [V.14].