Josef Leopold
Encyclopedia
Josef Leopold was a leading member of the Nazi Party in Austria
. He was the Landesleiter of the party from 1935 to 1938 and the head of the Sturmabteilung
in Austria. He belonged to the pro-independence tendency within Austrian Nazism and insisted that Adolf Hitler
was only a spiritual leader rather than a future Austrian leader.
and the constitutional pro-independence wing under Anton Reinthaller
. Leopold was interned in 1935 following the banning of the Nazi Party, although he was released the following year when Adolf Hitler
concluded a friendship treaty with Kurt Schuschnigg
.
and Odo Neustädter-Stürmer. Despite this the talks with Schuschnigg came to nothing and Leopold's desires to see the Nazis recognised and to establish a right-wing coalition known as the Deutschsozialer Volksbund were left unfulfilled.
His support for independence meant that Hitler did not trust Leopold's power and so he sent Wilhelm Keppler
to keep a watch on him in July 1937. However Keppler was told by Leopold that he took orders from no one. Whilst leading the Nazis in Vienna during 1938 Leopold boasted to British Union of Fascists
representative Robert Gordon-Canning
that he was about to lead an uprising with Hitler's aid. However the conversation was picked up by Schuschnigg who raided Leopold's office where documents relating to the coup plot were seized. Hitler finally dismissed Leopold as Landesleiter in February 1938 on the pretext that he wanted Austrian Nazis to follow legality.
Leopold was able to continue as a figure within the Nazi Party despite his earlier support for an independent Austria. He served as an SA inspector in Munich
before entering the Wehrmacht
in October 1939 as an Oberstleutnant
. He was Alfred Rosenberg
's choice for the role of General Commissar for Crimea
although he was killed in action just after the invasion of the Soviet Union
and ultimately the role went to fellow Austrian Alfred Frauenfeld
.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. He was the Landesleiter of the party from 1935 to 1938 and the head of the Sturmabteilung
Sturmabteilung
The Sturmabteilung functioned as a paramilitary organization of the National Socialist German Workers' Party . It played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s...
in Austria. He belonged to the pro-independence tendency within Austrian Nazism and insisted that Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
was only a spiritual leader rather than a future Austrian leader.
Early career
Leopold led a faction within Austrian Nazism that was underground in nature and which frequently launched terrorist attacks. His position as an extremist who supported independence meant that he clashed with the pro-Greater Germany wing of Theodor HabichtTheodor Habicht
Theodor Habicht was a leading political figure in Nazi Germany. He played a leading role in the Austrian movement.-Early years:...
and the constitutional pro-independence wing under Anton Reinthaller
Anton Reinthaller
Anton Reinthaller was an Austrian right wing politician active before and after the Second World War. He was the inaugural leader of the Freedom Party of Austria .- Early life :...
. Leopold was interned in 1935 following the banning of the Nazi Party, although he was released the following year when Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
concluded a friendship treaty with Kurt Schuschnigg
Kurt Schuschnigg
Kurt Alois Josef Johann Schuschnigg was Chancellor of the First Austrian Republic, following the assassination of his predecessor, Dr. Engelbert Dollfuss, in July 1934, until Germany’s invasion of Austria, , in March 1938...
.
Leadership of the Nazis
Later in 1936 he negotiated with Schuschnigg in an attempt to regain legal status for the Nazi Party. Leopold hoped through this to become part of a coalition government and to eventually form an independent Nazi government in Austria. He then sought to work more closely with other right-wing nationalist groups in order to come closer to his ideal of a Nazi Austria and in this endeavour won the backing of cabinet ministers Edmund Glaise-HorstenauEdmund Glaise-Horstenau
Edmund Glaise-Horstenau was an Austrian officer in the Bundesheer, last Vice-Chancellor of Austria before the 1938 Anschluss, and general in the German Wehrmacht during the Second World War.- Life :Born in Braunau am Inn the son of an officer, Glaise-Horstenau attended the Theresian Military...
and Odo Neustädter-Stürmer. Despite this the talks with Schuschnigg came to nothing and Leopold's desires to see the Nazis recognised and to establish a right-wing coalition known as the Deutschsozialer Volksbund were left unfulfilled.
His support for independence meant that Hitler did not trust Leopold's power and so he sent Wilhelm Keppler
Wilhelm Keppler
Wilhelm Karl Keppler was a German businessman and one of Adolf Hitler's early financial backers. Introduced to Hitler by Heinrich Himmler, Keppler helped to finance the Nazi Party....
to keep a watch on him in July 1937. However Keppler was told by Leopold that he took orders from no one. Whilst leading the Nazis in Vienna during 1938 Leopold boasted to British Union of Fascists
British Union of Fascists
The British Union was a political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley as the British Union of Fascists, in 1936 it changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists and then in 1937 to simply the British Union...
representative Robert Gordon-Canning
Robert Gordon-Canning
Robert Cecil Gordon-Canning was a notable British fascist, antisemite and supporter of Arab nationalist causes. He was briefly married to Australian born film star Mary Maguire.-Upbringing and early politics:...
that he was about to lead an uprising with Hitler's aid. However the conversation was picked up by Schuschnigg who raided Leopold's office where documents relating to the coup plot were seized. Hitler finally dismissed Leopold as Landesleiter in February 1938 on the pretext that he wanted Austrian Nazis to follow legality.
Under the Nazis
Following the AnschlussAnschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
Leopold was able to continue as a figure within the Nazi Party despite his earlier support for an independent Austria. He served as an SA inspector in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
before entering the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
in October 1939 as an Oberstleutnant
Oberstleutnant
Oberstleutnant is a German Army and Air Force rank equal to Lieutenant Colonel, above Major, and below Oberst.There are two paygrade associated to the rank of Oberstleutnant...
. He was Alfred Rosenberg
Alfred Rosenberg
' was an early and intellectually influential member of the Nazi Party. Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart; he later held several important posts in the Nazi government...
's choice for the role of General Commissar for Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
although he was killed in action just after the invasion of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and ultimately the role went to fellow Austrian Alfred Frauenfeld
Alfred Frauenfeld
Alfred Eduard Frauenfeld was an Austrian Nazi leader. An engineer by occupation, he was associated with the pro-Nazi Germany wing of Austrian Nazism.-Activism in Austria:...
.