Abstract
The Second Republic of Austria was established after the Second World War. As a former part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and subsequently Nazi Germany, its history is strongly shaped by two world wars and the deaths of millions of people. The handling of human remains and graves of victims of National Socialist terror, members of the armed forces of nations participating in the world wars as well as civilian casualties that are located on today’s federal territory, has been regulated by law since 1948. The responsibility officially lies with the Federal Ministry of the Interior / Department for War Graves Services. In practice, various institutions and interest groups have been involved in the identification and maintenance of so-called “war graves” and the recovery of human remains. This article aims to provide a brief outline of the current legal situation in Austria and discusses varying practices of handling war graves by presenting historical and recent examples.
Highlights
The Second Republic of Austria was established in the course of the political reorganization of Europe after the Second World War
With regard to the topic of this special issue, this paper focuses on a few pragmatic aspects of the current situation in Austria, aiming to elucidate the legal framework and presenting historical and recent examples that outline the heterogeneous approaches towards the bodies of those killed during the world wars and through Nazi persecution
A contemporary archaeology that engages with sites of the two world wars and Nazi crimes has developed in Austria since the early 2000s [26]
Summary
The Second Republic of Austria was established in the course of the political reorganization of Europe after the Second World War. Until 1918, the territory was part of the Austro-Hungarian/ Habsburg monarchy, which initiated World War One in alliance with the German Empire in 1914. For many citizens of inter-war Austria, a unification with Germany appeared as a favourable prospect in order to regain political importance and stabilize the economy [2]. Such a unification was strictly prohibited in the peace agreements that had been signed after World War One (“Anschlussverbot”). With regard to the topic of this special issue, this paper focuses on a few pragmatic aspects of the current situation in Austria, aiming to elucidate the legal framework and presenting historical and recent examples that outline the heterogeneous approaches towards the bodies of those killed during the world wars and through Nazi persecution
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