Ovi History eMagazine - Issue #5

https://ovipeadia.wordpress.com/ 12 March 1938 - Hitler annexes Austria Known as the 'Anschluss', Hitler's political union of Austria achieved through annexation began on 12 March 1938, and was completed just one day later. Afterwards, Austria was declared an official part of the Third Reich. On March 9, Schuschnigg called a national vote to resolve the question of Anschluss, or “annexation,” once and for all. Before the plebiscite could take place, however, Schuschnigg gave in to pressure from Hitler and resigned on March 11. In his resignation address, under coercion from the Nazis, he pleaded with Austrian forces not to resist a German “advance” into the country. The next day, March 12, Hitler accompanied German troops into Austria, where enthusiastic crowds met them. Hitler appointed a new Nazi government, and on March 13 the Anschluss was proclaimed. Austria existed as a federal state of Germany until the end of World War II, when the Allied powers declared the Anschluss void and reestablished an independent Austria. Schuschnigg, who had been imprisoned soon after resigning, was released in 1945. Ovi History Issue 5 - March Hitler annexes Austria Ovi Thematic/History eMagazines Publications 2025