Too little research

“Austrofascism should be a warning for today!”

The atmosphere was heated at the time: an attack took place at the Festspielhaus during a meeting of the Heimwehr in 1934. Crowds gathered in front of the entrance.(Bild: Stadtarchiv Salzburg, Fotoarchiv Franz Krieger)

The years 1934 to 1938 are regarded as harbingers of the later Nazi regime. However, too little research has been done into Austrofascism in Salzburg, say historians and the KPÖ Plus, which has submitted a motion on the subject to the local council. 

The period was characterized by poverty, hope and the first crushing of democracy. Authoritarian ideas and conservative values began to dominate everything. Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuß was in power. In the February battles of 1934, workers' movements were crushed and trade unions banned.

Putschists entrenched themselves in the Stadler inn in Lamprechtshausen.(Bild: Stadtarchiv Salzburg, Fotoarchiv Franz Krieger)

"There is very little research on this in Salzburg, let alone an overview work," says historian Robert Obermair from the University of Salzburg. The regional reappraisal of the era is lagging behind. Life stories of resistance fighters have been documented, but the focus is clearly on the Nazi era. Obermair: "Of course you can't compare the regimes. But everyone agrees that Austrofascism was totalitarian." Is the way we deal with the period today not critical enough? Symbols such as the Dollfuß memorial plaque in Bluntautal bear witness to this.

What really happened in Salzburg in those years?
One of the centers was Lamprechtshausen: Putschists had entrenched themselves in Gasthaus Stadler. In July 1934, the bloodiest clash in Salzburg took place during the Austria-wide Nazi coup attempts. The gendarmerie was attacked, the post office occupied and telephones rendered unusable. The putschists were stopped, but there were victims.

It was about democratic awareness, which is more important today than ever.

Helga Embacher, Historikerin Universität Salzburg

The resistance was concentrated in strong railroad communities such as Saalfelden and Bischofshofen. In Salzburg, an annual memorial at the local railway station commemorates the February battles of 1934. The courage of the red local railway workers is still a role model in the struggle for democracy today, emphasizes the concentration camp association. The story of August Gruber is exemplary. He was a member of the Social Democratic Workers' Party and the Republican Protection League. He was retired by the Austrofascists, but was reinstated as a train dispatcher under the Nazi regime. Resistance was ultimately his death sentence.

Wreath-laying ceremony at Salzburg's local railway station last week with representatives of the KPÖ plus(Bild: KPÖ plus)

For historian Helga Embacher, also from the University of Salzburg, it should first and foremost be a warning in times of increasing fascist movements. "It's about understanding democracy."

Salzburg's Deputy Mayor Kay-Michael Dankl (KPÖ Plus) is critical of the gap in the process of coming to terms with the past and has submitted a motion to the local council. In preparation for the 100-year anniversary, he suggests cooperation with the university and external experts.