Heeresgaschictliches Museum

On May 27, 2010, we went to the Heeresgaschictliches Museum in Austria. This was a military history museum that accurately depicted Viennese history. This museum had many uniforms and other artifacts from the Austrian army. It even had items from the time when Hitler was attempting to take over the country. I was told by a local that saying the word Hitler in public is against the law in Austria. I am not sure about how much truth this claim actually has, but I found it interesting that we were told this.

This museum showed how Vienna holds onto traditional items. For example, the museum has the actual car that Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and the attire that he was wearing when he was assassinated. This event was significant because it was part of a series of events that led to World War I. Archduke Franz Ferdinand relates to our class because he was the cousin of the Crown Prince Rudolph. In the book A Nervous Splendor, we read about how Crown Prince Rudolph committed suicide at his hunting lodge in Mayerling.

A military history museum that accurately depicted Viennese history.

I wish the museum would have included more information about how Hitler took over Austria. There was a small section about how Hitler declared Austria to be part of German on March 15, 1938. This made the Austrian economy subject to German rules and regulations. Hitler must have been very convincing and powerful for the Austrians to actually join Germany. This topic relates well to my thesis because Sigmund Freud would have been very old when Hitler was in his middle age. This really reflects how Freud’s work predicted that people need intoxicants to reduce their anxiety. Freud would say that Hitler literally hypnotized the audience with his speeches and other propaganda.