Ostmärkische Sturmscharen

Ostmark Sturmscharen called himself a Founded in 1930 in Austria with the participation of the leading Christian Socialist Members of Parliament Kurt Schuschnigg " Catholic cultural and political renewal and protection movement " or paramilitary military formation.

History

On October 14, 1930, the inaugural meeting of this Association was held in Innsbruck "Austria House " as part of a " young voters Assembly of Catholic young people" instead. As an association chairman acted Innsbruck teachers and council Hans Bator. The stated purpose of the association, the patriotic and cultural education of Catholic young men of Austria was declared. In June 1933, the headquarters of the association of Innsbruck was moved to Vienna. In the related amendment to the Statutes development of the male youth was led in military sports as a supplement. The Ostmark Sturmscharen advocated a Catholic- Christian society and recruited its members mostly from Catholic youth, companions and teachers' organizations. From the beginning, also associate organizations for women and girls were established.

Although they were originally founded as a cultural organization, the Ostmark Sturmscharen began in the course of their Austria -wide construction from 1932 with the establishment of its own military formations. Your claims to have these included 1933 15.000 man. At the suppression of the so-called February revolt of Republican Defense Corps in 1934, the storm troopers involved with a contingent of 4,900 men.

Politically, the Ostmark Sturmscharen, as the Reichsführer soon Kurt Schuschnigg acted, attributable to the right spectrum, representing a committed Christian socialist Austrian patriotism. However, the radical nature of the Heimwehren they faced basically negative and were not from these imposed. This made them interesting for Christian Social politicians as Engelbert Dollfuss, for the Ostmark Sturmscharen represented a welcome counterweight to the strong on his government exerting pressure Heimwehren.

The storm troopers wore from 1932 gray uniform shirts, black ties and gray caps with the Pax characters. Because of their proximity to clerical fascism, they were called by their opponents as the " Mount of Olives Hussars " or " SA of the corporate state ." The storm troopers were aligned anti-Semitic, Jews were not included. It was a racial anti-Semitism represented, conversions to the Catholic faith should not lead to equality: To guide people alone were capable of the " indigenous population ". Also, anti-Slav positions were represented.

A special position took the Ostmark Sturmscharen in Lower Austria, where she even called the Lower Austrian Home Guard built and officially Niederösterreichische Sturmscharen. They were heavily promoted in this state by the Farmers' Union. The Centre can Guide was the director of the Reich Farmers' Federation Leopold Figl. Another prominent official of the Ostmark Sturmscharen was the future resistance fighter against National Socialism Jacob Kastelic. In the years 1933 and 1934 he held the post of the Vienna Provincial leader, until 1938 acted Kastelic as head of the Social and Economic Association of the organization.

The dissolution of all military organizations of the First Republic in October 1936 no longer concerned the Ostmark Sturmscharen, since they had already turned back on April 11 of this year to a mere " cultural organization " and laid down their arms.

Museale reception

In the Vienna Museum of Military History are uniforms of the Ostmark Sturmscharen and the Home Guards. As a special piece is also the weapon of shadow village, one fashioned from an Austrian infantry weapon hunting rifle issued.