The first military operation of Hitler - Anschluss Austria

The modern history of Austria, as an independent state, is not very long. In 1918, the Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed, twenty years later the country became part of the Third Reich, and only ten years after its collapse regained its sovereignty.

Adolf Hitler was born in the Austrian city of Lunz. He considered himself a German and dreamed of a great Germany, and in the most direct sense: the Reich was supposed, according to his plan, to have a large territory. To begin with, he decided to unite all the lands inhabited by the Germans.

The commonness of historical destinies, the absence of language problems and an extended common border were the factors that predetermined the Anschluss of Austria. The very word, which does not have an exact and unambiguous translation (something like inclusion in a country or an alliance), has become the common name of an impudent capture by a non-military way.

In 1938, the German army was practically unable to solve military tasks, so the main problem for the German tanks of the eighth army, operating under the plan "Otto", was to get to Vienna and not break down. With a grief in half they succeeded.

Resistance was not and could not be, the locals joyfully met the German soldiers, treated them to everything they could, and showered them with flowers. Of course, in order for everything to happen this way, it was necessary to conduct preparatory work. The Austrians suddenly felt that they were also Germans, and the Anschluss of Austria was not simply painless, but rather joyful.

The influence of the pro-German minded, and often frankly, Nazi political forces was very strong in the country. The rapid economic success of the young and energetic chancellor, who in a short time was able to overcome total unemployment and poverty, Germany's growing technical and military power acted hypnotically on the mass consciousness .

Hitler, talking with the Austrian leadership in the language of an ultimatum and choosing the right moment when no one could intervene for the independence of this country, or did not want, carried out the accession of a sovereign state, having increased by seventeen percent the territory under its control and ten by the population. The Austrian army became part of the Wehrmacht, and industry began to carry out German military orders.

In addition, the Anschluss of Austria can be called an outright robbery. The gold reserves of this country automatically became the property of the Reichsbank, and they were considerable. Recently discovered oil reserves and already developed deposits of iron ore and magnesite in Styria have become a pleasant addition to all these acquisitions.

The reaction of the European community to the Anschluss of Austria, and in fact, to the violation of the Versailles agreements was contemplative, some concern was expressed only by the Litvinov drug commission.

Hitler was later reproached for not allowing a referendum in Austria to take place immediately before the Anschluss, March 13. He held it in April, and almost all Austrians spoke for the unification of the two fraternal peoples.

On October 1 of the same year, Hitler likewise, without any resistance, annexed the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia, and eleven months later the occupation of Poland began. Its section predetermined the impending war with the USSR, before this common frontier between Germany and Soviet Russia was not there.