Walter Pfrimer
Walter Pfrimer | |
---|---|
Born | Walter Pfrimer 22 December 1881 |
Died | 31 May 1968 | (aged 86)
Nationality | Austrian |
Citizenship | Austrian, German (1938-1945) |
Occupation | Lawyer |
Known for | Heimwehr leader |
Political party | Nazi Party |
Walter Pfrimer (22 December 1881 – 31 May 1968) was an
Early years
The son of a wine merchant, Pfrimer studied law at the University of Graz, gaining his doctorate in 1906.[1] As a student he had been a member of the Burschenschaft and an ardent follower of the German nationalist and antisemitic hard-liner Georg Ritter von Schönerer before settling into a position as a lawyer in Judenburg.[2]
He became a Heimwehr leader early in the movement's life and initially won the financial backing of the Alpine Montangesellschaft, the largest heavy industry concern in Austria.[3] His Heimwehr unit was amongst the best armed, having received weapons from both Bavarian Georg Escherich rightist paramilitary leader and the local Landeshauptmann Anton Rintelen.[2]
Political views
Pfrimer advocated
Putsch
As head of the Heimwehr in Styria he attempted a putsch in 1931, initially in his own region. After rising up in Styria his units launched a marcia su Wien in a direct copy of Benito Mussolini's March on Rome but it proved to be a disaster and Pfrimer became mockingly known as the "half-day dictator" in reference to how long it took to put his attempted rebellion down.[8] He failed to gain support from the other regional leaders and indeed the coup was so poorly organised that it was easily put down by the otherwise weak government of Karl Buresch.[9]
Aftermath
Pfrimer was damaged irreparably by the fiasco of putsch.
Finally in 1933 Pfrimer allied himself and his units to the Nazis and before long his group had been absorbed entirely and he became a strong advocate of Anschluss.[11] His membership of the Nazi Party was made official on 24 February 1933.[1] When the Anschluss for which he had longed was completed in 1938 he returned to some prominence and sat as a member of the Reichstag.[1]
After the Allies liberated Austria Pfrimer was taken prisoner by the British forces and held in internment for a year.[12] Following his release he returned to his legal practice in Judenburg and lived out his days as a private citizen.[12]
References
- ^ a b c d e Philip Rees, Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890, Simon & Schuster, 1990 p. 294
- ^ a b c F. L. Carsten, The Rise of Fascism, 1982, p. 223
- ^ John T. Lauridsen, Nazism and the Radical Right in Austria, 1918-1934, 2007, p. 119
- ^ Philip Morgan, Fascism in Europe'p. 63', 2003, p. 34
- ^ Paul Hayes, Fascism, London: Allen & Unwin, 1973, p. 62
- ^ Bruce F. Pauley, From Prejudice to Persecution: A History of Austrian Anti-Semitism, p. 177
- ^ F.L. Carsten, The Rise of Fascism, London: Methuen & Co, 1974, p. 226
- ^ a b Iván T. Berend, Decades of Crisis: Central and Eastern Europe before World War II, 2001, p. 302
- ^ Barbara Jelavich, Modern Austria: Empire and Republic, 1815-1986, 1987, p. 189
- ^ R.J.B. Bosworth, The Oxford Handbook of Fascism, Oxford University Press, 2009, p. 443
- ^ Pauley, From Prejudice to Persecution, p. 179
- ^ a b Rees, Biographical Dictionary, p. 295