Yet, unsustainable stuff like this is bandied about and soon and in this Hitler was right, "if you repeat a lie long enough, people will believe it". It is greatly upseting to see topics like this trying to gain acceptance into the general milieu. It is not only a lie, it is an insult to anyone who survived that time, especially, those brave men who served in that war, the true victims of the oppression who lost their homes, their families and died in gas chambers and anyone with a historical background. By the way, Lindbergh lost a great deal of popularity for his stance.
Countess, I really take exception of your choice of words towards my posts, that you call them "lies" and "insults". I don't think such statements are appropriate when dealing with other memebers of this forum who have a different opinion. All I have written here serves the purpose of seeing both sides instead of believing one possesses the absolute truth. It can be backed up with historical research and though I accept you have a different opinion it is very impolite to accuse me of telling lies or to say that reading what I wrote makes you "sick and angry". It is in addition very unprofessional for someone with a mayor in history to believe there is only one final truth when it comes to assessing the past.
Okay, but I try again to make my position more clear:
Nowhere did I say that it was alright that Austria became a part of Nazi-Germany in 1938. Other than in 1933's Germany, there were no votes which gave the Nazi a kind of democratic basis to claim the country and immediately switch it into a dictatorship. Till 1938 the Nazi-party was illegal in Austria and only Hitler's thread with military intervention made the Austrian government change their politics towards the Nazis. So while Germans had a choice and for reasons made understandible by today's historians did not want to see what was looming at the horizon, it was different with Austria.
You may claim that in case of votes the Austrian would have voted for Germany, but they didn't, so this is no historical fact. What is a fact are the orders the Wehrmacht had when it came to the annexation of Austria: try it in peace but use full power if there is resistance.
We so easily believe because there has been so much published about the Nazis that the people back then were as well informed as we are, but just look at what caused the Iracq war to get support: a pack of lies published by interested parties. And back then, the interested party called NSDAP controlled all the German media. English was not so common, so only some people could get their information from the BBC radio. As Britain was in 1938 still following their appeasement politics, I doubt there was much reporting about how things really were in Germany.
Plus it was only 15 to 20 years after WWI which had changed Europe forever as it was the first war with rather industrial means of killing. After the war, millions had lost their lifes or worse: they came home handicapped or bodily healthy but psychologically brutalized through what they had lived through. Society faced massive problems as the monarchy as stabilizing factor was gone, often the belief in God and a God-given society as well. The people had access to weaponry and suffered from poverty and destruction. That was the climate that few of us can understand today
which fed the aggressive and murderous potential of so many people and made others long so much for peace, security and stability that they accepted that it was only for them and not for those the reigning powers deemed to be underlings.
That I somehow can understand that or accept it as an explaination does not mean I condone that. That my family comes from a militarian background (though noone at the moment is serving at the Bundeswehr) does not mean that I believe it was right what the Wehrmacht did to suppress other countries.
But to say it clearly: Austria had definately no chance against Germany, as Germany was set to get it, no matter what. The moment German soldiers went into Austria, they had orders to shoot any Habsburg-family member they could get hold of - if you're interested, I can supply the documents proving that. The Nazis had already build Flossenbuerg KZ (which is close to the Bohemian border and connected through train tracks to the main train track from Berlin to Prague and Vienna) in order to have a place to hold Czech and Austrian citizens who were against the take-over.
Thus there are many historical facts that point to the country Austria as a victim, even though many Austrians were guilty.
What I argue here is the treatment of a country after the war and there are a lot of reasons why it was convenient for the allies to put the country Austria as well as Germany into the culprit's box while the country France stayed out of it even though the governments of both countries decided to collaborate with Germany after the Wehrmacht had occupied their country.
But of course this is a historical discussion as only very few people still live to tell of these days but if one of them who had actively fought against the German Nazis and worked diplomatically for the country of his birth like archduke Otto publicisies his opinion then at least one should take a closer look at reasons why he might have a point here. To say because the Austrians "all looked so happy" is enough to condemn them all is like saying all voters for Bush wanted the war in Iracq or the happenings at Guantanamo.
Plus: to think that because the archduke is 95 he does not longer know what he is talking about is rubbish. He was there, deeply involved in fighting the Nazis and he is still here, old but not suffering from dementia.
Hope this helps in understanding my position.
BTW - my grandfather was one of the founders of the Social democrats party in Germany, was beaten up in 1933 when he organised support for the Social Democrats in the election and made to pay for his political work from 1933-1939 when he was forced into the army. My father was 18 when he had to do "Arbeitsdienst" and 19 when he became a soldier in 1939. He was handicapped in the war, then prisoner of war and was declared a Non-Nazi as well as his father immediately after his return. They then worked both for the Social Democrats in order to establish democracy in the Federal Republic of Germany. To tell me I insulted both of them by pointing out that historical judgment is not always as simple as some people like to believe is an insult in itself.