A BACKGROUND TO THE NEWS

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 144, 15 March 1938, Page 7

A BACKGROUND TO THE NEWS

Herr Hitler A cable from Vienna referred to Aus tria as "Herr Hitler’s homeland. The son of a minor Austrian customs official, Adolf Hitler nngrated bMunich before the opening ot the G eat War in 1914, where he earned a pie carious living by drawing and desigi in" and manual work. hi tlie war lie served in a Bavaria, regiment, was twice wounded, attained the rank of corporal and won the lio>. Cross, and after demobilisation fouiu himself at once unable to settle dowi to civilian life and to get employmeii' "In his own mind,” says an historian "lie incarnated a military and a Ger man ideal, and therefore found thGerman military defeat inexplicabb except as a result of treachery. Hiprevious reading had indicated thnthere is and can be only one source ot treachery and treason in Germany—the Jews and tlie Marxists —and his early hatred of both rose to the pitci. of monomania, in which a familnu form of olisession was curiouslv mingled with personal ambition. With . single-mindedness of purpose lie re solved to save Germany by ruling tier. He eagerly joined up with extrem ists, and was the seventh member of what was to be in effect a workers party—National Socialist Workers (Nazi) Party. It was formed in Mini icli. His attempt to overthrow tlie Government by a putsch in 1924 earned him “honourable” imprisonment in a fortress and it was there he wrote ins book, "Mein Kainpf” (“My Struggle” i. in which his aims and objectives are candidly set out, and which still forms the basis of German foreign policy, a» well as German national policy. He crystallised in himself the discon tent ot' a proud and defeated nation, and his partv gained in power every day until he was a/ile to challenge even tlie authority of Marshal Hindenburg. He came into power in 1933, and since then he has imprinted his authority on the German nation and Europe has scarcely known a .peaceful moment. Vienna

Vienna, which figures so prominently in the present Austrian crisis, is the capital of the Austrian Republic—or should Austria now be called a German province? It is situated among woods at the edge of a fertile plain, and lies on tlie right bank of the Danube. It consists of an old city, and the suburbs. Hie old city is nearly circular and is surrounded bv a broad fosse and a wall from 40ft. to 50ft. high, which has 10 regular bastions and forms altogether what is called the Bastei or Ringstrasse, now one of the favourite promenades of Vienna, commanding a very fine view. (A photograph of this part of Vienna appeared in “The Dominion” yesterday.) * The inner, or old city, of \ lenna, i« very irregularly built, most of the streets are narrow and crooked. This part contains the former palaces of the emperor, and of many of the principal nobility, the public offices, the finest churches, State opera house, and most of the museums and art collections, the colleges, the stock exchange, and the most splendid shops. The Hofburg, the former Imperial palace, has been turned into offices, and shops, and its ballroom has become a theatre. The modern part houses a library containing about 1,000,000 volumes. Though the Austrian dominions are now greatly diminished Vienna is. still the chief commercial city of south-east Europe. Impoverished, Vienna is also notable among the cities of Europe for its housing conditions, and the municipal care of the populace. The manufactures are silk, velvet, shawls, gold and silver lace, and ornaments, linen, cloth, furniture, chemicals, meerschaum pipes, porcelain, and musical instruments. In one of the suhurtis there is a park of 2000 acres. The city is connected by rail with every principal city of Europe. The population is about 2,000,000. Metternich

The Nazi flag is flying over the his torie chancellory in Vienna, where Metternich spun his tangled webs, and the Vienna Congress met. Clemens Lothar Wenzel, Prince Metternich, an Austrian diplomat, was the son of a diplomat. He was born at Coblenz on May 15, 1773, and entered the Austrian diplomatic service in 1794. He was Austrian Minister at a sncces sion of European Courts between 1891 and ISO 7, and became the Foreign Minister of Austria in 1899. From 1814. when he represented Austria at rhe Congress of Vienna, he played a leading part in European polities. To Metternich, more than to any other man, was due, after. 1815, the suppression in Europe of popular, constitutionalist, or nationalist movements in every quarter, the domination exercised over Europe by the Holy Alliance. In 1848-49, when Europe flamed out into a series of revolutions, he tell from power, and passed the remainder of his life in retirement, dying at Vienna on June 11, 1859. Archduke Otto

A message from Brussels states that Archduke Otto is wst depressed by the course of events in Austria, as he realises that his hopes of returning to the country are ended. Archduke Otto’s full nirme is I'ranz Josef Otto Robert Marie Antoine Kari Maximilian Heinrich Sixtus Xavie. Felix Renatus Ludwig Gaetan Pin* Ignaz, Prince of Habsburg-Lorraine, the exiled pretender to the Austrian and Hungarian thrones. He is one of eight children of the late Emperor Karl and his widow, Zita of Bourbon-Panne, who is herself the tenth child of a family of 17 children. She is a master ful woman, altogether a strong person ality, but not a favourite. Austrians might have been inelined to accept Otto before now were it not for his mother. He was born near Vienna or> November 29, 1912.

. Otto has lived in Brussels for nnrny years and was educated at Louvain University, where he obtained a doctor ate by examination. He lias grown up “grave, intelligent, sensitive and extra ordinarily good-looking. ... He is a modest boy and extremely well-man-nered. but 700 years of Habsburgs have driven into his brain complete appro eiation of the privileges and preroga fives of kingship ” He has always je ferred to Austrians as “My people.” He is a keen student. He speira German. French. Italian, Spanish. Eng lish and Hungarian quite fluently. 11“ has always taken a strong anti-Hitie: line: ‘‘l absolutely reject Nazism for Austria.” he once said. “This uu-Aus trian movement promises everything to everyone, but really intends the mos' ruthless subjugation of the Austrian people. . . ..The people of Austria wilt never tolerate that our beautiful fatherland should become an exploited colony and that the Austrian should become a num of the second category " Nearly 390 towns ol Austria tiavgone through the ceremony of giving Otto honorary citizenship. Dr. Scbsnebnigg was a staunch monarch i<t.