Wilhelm Miklas
Encyclopedia
Wilhelm Miklas was an Austria
n politician who served as the third President of Austria, from 1928 until its annexation by Nazi Germany
in the Anschluss
1938.
official in Krems an der Donau, Lower Austria
, Wilhelm Miklas graduated from high school at Seitenstetten and went on to study history and geography at the University of Vienna
, while serving in his role for the Christian Social Party.
Miklas was the headmaster of the Federal Secondary School in Horn, Lower Austria from 1905 to 1922.
. On 10 December 1928 he was elected the President of Austria, a role he served in until the position ceased to exist ten years later when Austria was annexed by Germany in the Anschluss.
In 1930 Miklas appeared on a set of Austrian postage stamps. In 1936 he entertained Miklós Horthy
at Lake Wörth
.
Miklas originally offered amnesty
to jailed Nazi members, but refused to turn over the national police force to Arthur Seyss-Inquart
, although after Adolf Hitler
ordered military operations along the border, Miklas was forced to concede to their demands and installed Seyss-Inquart as the Austrian Minister of the Interior.
Miklas was highly unpopular among Austrian Nazis because he refused to commute the death sentence
s imposed on assassins of Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss
after the failed putsch in 1934.
On 11 March 1938 Hermann Göring
demanded that Seyss-Inquart replace Kurt Schuschnigg
as the Federal Chancellor of Austria; otherwise, German forces would overrun Austria the following day. Miklas refused, and after Hitler received confirmation from Benito Mussolini
that he would not interfere, it was announced that German troops would invade at dawn the following day. Miklas capitulated at midnight, announcing that he had instated Seyss-Inquart as the new Chancellor, but it was too late. When German troops rolled over the border at dawn the next day, they were largely greeted as heroes.
Miklas was disliked by many members of the Austrian Nazi Party at this point for his initial refusal to appoint them custodians of Austria, and it ended up being future Waffen-SS
colonel Otto Skorzeny
who protected Miklas during the Anschluss.
He was placed under house arrest
and abandoned the political sphere.
Miklas died on 20 March 1956 in Vienna
.
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...
n politician who served as the third President of Austria, from 1928 until its annexation by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
1938.
Early life
Born as the son of a post officePost office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
official in Krems an der Donau, Lower Austria
Lower Austria
Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
, Wilhelm Miklas graduated from high school at Seitenstetten and went on to study history and geography at the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
, while serving in his role for the Christian Social Party.
Miklas was the headmaster of the Federal Secondary School in Horn, Lower Austria from 1905 to 1922.
Career
In 1907 he was elected to parliament as a member of the Christian Social Party. Miklas held a parliamentary seat during the First Republic from 1918 to 1928. From 1923 to 1928 he was President of the National Council of AustriaNational Council of Austria
The National Council is one of the two houses of the Austrian parliament. According to the constitution, the National Council and the complementary Federal Council are peers...
. On 10 December 1928 he was elected the President of Austria, a role he served in until the position ceased to exist ten years later when Austria was annexed by Germany in the Anschluss.
In 1930 Miklas appeared on a set of Austrian postage stamps. In 1936 he entertained Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
at Lake Wörth
Lake Worth
Lake Worth is the name of several places in the United States:*Lake Worth, Florida, a city*Lake Worth Lagoon, a lagoon in Florida*Lake Worth, Texas, a town in Texas*Lake Worth , a lake in Texas...
.
Miklas originally offered amnesty
Amnesty
Amnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent people, without changing the laws defining the offense. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the...
to jailed Nazi members, but refused to turn over the national police force to Arthur Seyss-Inquart
Arthur Seyss-Inquart
Arthur Seyss-Inquart was a Chancellor of Austria, lawyer and later Nazi official in pre-Anschluss Austria, the Third Reich and for wartime Germany in Poland and the Netherlands...
, although after 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...
ordered military operations along the border, Miklas was forced to concede to their demands and installed Seyss-Inquart as the Austrian Minister of the Interior.
Miklas was highly unpopular among Austrian Nazis because he refused to commute the death sentence
Death Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...
s imposed on assassins of Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss
Engelbert Dollfuss
Engelbert Dollfuss was an Austrian Christian Social and Patriotic Front statesman. Serving previously as Minister for Forest and Agriculture, he ascended to Federal Chancellor in 1932 in the midst of a crisis for the conservative government...
after the failed putsch in 1934.
On 11 March 1938 Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
demanded that Seyss-Inquart replace 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...
as the Federal Chancellor of Austria; otherwise, German forces would overrun Austria the following day. Miklas refused, and after Hitler received confirmation from Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
that he would not interfere, it was announced that German troops would invade at dawn the following day. Miklas capitulated at midnight, announcing that he had instated Seyss-Inquart as the new Chancellor, but it was too late. When German troops rolled over the border at dawn the next day, they were largely greeted as heroes.
Miklas was disliked by many members of the Austrian Nazi Party at this point for his initial refusal to appoint them custodians of Austria, and it ended up being future Waffen-SS
Waffen-SS
The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
colonel Otto Skorzeny
Otto Skorzeny
Otto Skorzeny was an SS-Obersturmbannführer in the German Waffen-SS during World War II. After fighting on the Eastern Front, he was chosen as the field commander to carry out the rescue mission that freed the deposed Italian dictator Benito Mussolini from captivity...
who protected Miklas during the Anschluss.
He was placed under house arrest
House arrest
In justice and law, house arrest is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to his or her residence. Travel is usually restricted, if allowed at all...
and abandoned the political sphere.
Miklas died on 20 March 1956 in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.