Tactical Win for Austrian Nationalism
Saturday 10th
October 1936
Austria continued to struggle on in its ultimately futile attempt to maintain
a distinctly national identity in the face of pressure for closer ties with Germany. The Chancellor Schuschnigg dissolved the
proto-Nazi Heimwehr, which had shown no appetite to obey the government decree
of May absorbing all armed movements into a single, state-controlled body. Schuschnigg's attempt to position himself as a militant proponent of Austrian nationalism was a doomed exercise in riding the tiger of right-wing sentiment.
The move was
facilitated by a quarrel between the Heimwehr’s leaders, Major Fey and Prince
Stahremberg, which had been referred to the Chancellor for arbitration. The two
Heimwehr ministers made a very token and brief withdrawal in protest at the
dissolution of the armed wing before re-entering the government. The only
permanent outcome was that Stahremberg retreated into private life and
eventually exile.
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