Austria Between Central Europe, Paneuropean Dreams, the “Anschluss” to Nazi Germany and in Exile Abroad 1918/19–45
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63 II . A LOST CAUSE: AUSTRIA BETWEEN CENTRAL EUROPE, PANEUROPEAN DREAMS, THE “ANSCHLUSS” TO NAZI GERMANY AND IN EXILE ABROAD 1918/19–45 1 . THE END OF THE EUROPEAN GREAT POWERS AND A MAN WITH HIS VISION The history of the integration and unification of Europe was often a result of breaks and rifts closely connected with political concepts that ended up reorgan- izing the continent. An overview of these attempts is presented in an illustration,1 which shows that these plans were developed for the most part against the back- ground of far-reaching changes that were characterized by crises and splits: the end of the First World War in 1918 has been viewed as a twofold radical change which consisted of both the internal and external revolutionizing of the world of nation-states. The collapse of the Concert of European Powers (1815–1914) went hand in hand with the fall of four monarchies, the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, the German Empire (Kaiserreich), the Ottoman Empire, and Tsarist Russia as well as their transition to both democratic-republican and authoritarian and dic- tatorial political systems.2 Austria’s foreign policy was greatly influenced by all of these crucial developments. Its foreign and domestic policy had been operating in the shadow of the question of Anschluss and the virulent scenarios of civil war since 1918–19. Count Richard Nikolaus Coudenhove-Kalergi’s ideas on “Paneurope”3 were reflexes to the triple crises of the years from 1917–19 which arose from a crisis 1 See Graph 1: Attempts at the Reorganization of Europe and Suggestions for its Integration and the documents 1–13 in the appendix “Documents”. 2 Horst MÖLLER, Europa zwischen den Weltkriegen (Oldenbourg Grundriss der Geschichte 21), München 1998, 18–39. 3 Claus SCHÖNDUBE, Ein Leben für Europa: Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, in: Thomas JAN- SEN – Dieter MAHNCKE (Hrsg.), Persönlichkeiten der europäischen Integration. Vier zehn biographische Essays (Europäische Schriften des Instituts für Europäische Politik 56), Bonn 1981, 25–70; still useful and valid: Martin POSSELT, Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi und die Europäische Parlamentarier-Union. Eine parlamentarische Bewegung für eine „Europäische Konstituante“ (1946–1952), I-II Bde, Dissertation Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz 1987; Ani- ta ZIEGERHOFER, Die Paneuropa-Bewegung der Zwischenkriegszeit, in: Österreichisches Jahrbuch für Politik (ÖJP) 1996, Munich 1997, 573–594; IDEM, Botschafter Europas. Richard II. A Lost Cause Graph 1 64 Attempts at the reorganization of Europe and suggestions for its integration Timeframe Suggestion/Idea Protagonists/Leaders Profile-Methods Background Context Result/Effect 1922–1923 “Paneurope” Richard Nikolaus ideational-elitist, World War I Discussion federal states / Coudenhove-Kalergi cooperative court Soviet revolution instrument “amalgamation of peoples” of arbitration ascent of USA symbolism intergovernmental supported by AUT 1929–1930 “European Conference” Aristide Briand political-economic German revisionist policy rejection by Germany federation of states Alexis Leger intergovernmental world economic crisis rejection by AUT 1940 Suggestion for Winston Spencer Churchill political-military Hitler’s “Western rejection by France British-French union Jean Monnet supranational campaign” impending capitulation of Paris 1943 “European Council”, Winston Churchill political-cooperative pacification of Europe US-reservation “more effective alliance” Coudenhove-Kalergi USSR-UK-USA USSR rejection 1946 Zurich speech Winston Churchill political-functional USSR threat implementation of ECSC German-French direction Duncan Sandys cooperative Cold War supranational “United States of Europe” special relationship UK- accepted by AUT and USA generally in favor 1946–1948 “Europe as a third force” Europe associations, ideational-visionary World War II differences with Council federation Duncan Sandys constitutional Cold War of Europe unionist presence of USSR-US supported by AUT 1947 “European reconstruction” George C. Marshall economic- Allied dissent, Cold War, implementation of the ERP/ William Clayton intergovernmental containment OEEC; AUT in favor 1949 Council of Europe Ernest Bevin cultural-political, human “Europe movement” implementation of the Georges Bidault rights, consultative ECHR/ECSC Robert Schuman welcomed by AUT 1950–1952 European Coal and Steel Robert Schuman sectorial-economic, Europeanization of the implementation of the Community Jean Monnet partly supranational Ruhr Control ECSC; observed by AUT 1950–1952 “European army” René Pleven military no German army pushed by USA EDC Heinrich von Brentano supranational control of the Germans observed by AUT 1954 EPC Alcide De Gasperi federal-supranational remilitarization rejection by France 1. The the End of 1. European Great and Powers aMan with His Vision 1954–1957 “Relance” Paul-Henri Spaak horizontal-economic Suez: failed implementation of EEC, ”Common Market” Pierre Uri partly supranational recolonialization EAEC, customs union, Treaties of Rome Hans von der Groeben trade and competition policy; observed by AUT 1961–1962 “Union of European Charles de Gaulle political-cooperative political framework for Benelux: rejection, thus Peoples” Christian Fouchet intergovernmental EEC/UK application no UK accession for quite some time observed by AUT 1978–1979 “European Monetary Valéry Giscard dEstaing monetary policy Werner Plan/Vietnam compromise monetarists/ System” Helmut Schmidt intergovernmental end of Bretton Woods economists followed by AUT 1985–1993 Single Market white paper Helmut Kohl/ monetary, economic, German unity Single Market; Monetary SEA/”Political Union” François Mitterrand political union end of the Cold War Union; Union Treaty of Jacques Delors partly supranational/ opening of the East France rejected political Maastricht 3 pillars union, AUT attracted 1999–2000 “Convention on Roman Herzog process for consensus on EU enlargement “Charter”, model for Fundamental Rights” human rights EU joining ECHR? constitutional convention 2001–2004 “Constitutional Valéry Giscard d‘Estaing process for consensus institutional reform “Constitutional Treaty”? Convention” Giuliano Amato/ on merging treaties for EU enlargement French and Dutch Veto; Jean-Luc Dehaene constitutional law Iraq crisis and Iraq War supported by AUT 2005–2009 Revision and renegotiation Angela Merkel process for consensus on Financial Market and First Irish No – then Yes of the Constitutional Frank-Walter Steinmeier merging treaties for new World Economic Crisis – EP strengthened – EU Treaty (CT); European Jean-Claude Juncker intergovernmental and Foreign Service and EU- Union Treaty (EUT) of supranational procedures Presidency; CT and EUT Lisbon supported by Austria 65 66 II. A Lost Cause in European political systems and a crisis in ideological orientation, in the wake of which was also an economic crisis. The system that resulted from the Paris Peace Treaties of 1919–20 offered only partial answers and unsatisfactory solu- tions to these questions and these problems, providing an opportunity for Cou- denhove-Kalergi to present his ideas. Who was this man? Coudenhove-Kalergi4 came into the world on November 17, 1894 in Tokyo, where his father Heinrich served as an Austrian diplomat. His mother, Mitsuko Aoyama, came from a wealthy Japanese family. Years later in Japan, she was called “the mother of Europe”. For Coudenhove, she represented “Asia” and his father “Europe”. Looking back at his childhood, Coudenhove remembered that his thinking was not based upon nations, but rather upon continents. Europe was Coudenhove-Kalergi’s “nation”. Two years after his birth, the family moved into Ronsperg Castle (Pobežovice) in the Western Bohemian forests. After the death of his father in 1906, Richard attended the Augustine Grammar School in Brixen (Bressanone), after which the family moved to Vienna, where the young count became a pupil at the Theresianum (1908–13). Richard did not feel at ease either there or within Viennese social circles, since “his ideas about the questions of life and politics were too different from those of his rank.”5 After graduation, he began studies in philosophy at the University of Vienna, from which he graduated in 1917. During his student years, he married the famous Viennese actress Ida Roland in 1915. His marriage to a divorced woman who was not a member of the nobility and who was thirteen years older led to a tempo- rary split with Coudenhove’s family. Instead of being a member of a conservative caste, he turned into a modern man, a child of the twentieth century.6 Nikolaus Coudenhove-Kalergi und die Paneuropa-Bewegung in den zwanziger und dreißiger Jahren, Wien – Köln – Weimar 2004, 499–513; Guido MÜLLER, Europäische Gesellschafts- beziehungen nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg. Das Deutsch-Französische Studienkomitee und der Europäische Kulturbund, München 2005, 457–474, see also in general: Jean-Baptiste DURO- SELLE, L’idée d’Europe dans l’Histoire, Paris 1965. 4 On the career of Coudenhove-Kalergi as a “European patriot”: POSSELT, Richard Couden- hove-Kalergi und die Europäische Parlamentarier Union, Bd. I, 14–20. Anita ZIEGERHOFER-PRETTENTHALER, Richard Nicolaus Graf von Coudenhove-Kaler- gi (1894–1972), in: John M. SPALEK – Konrad FEILCHENFELDT – Sandra H. HAWRYL- CHAK (Eds.), Deutschsprachige Exilliteratur seit 1933, Vol. 4: Bibliographien, Part 1 (A-G), Zürich – München 2003, 3–26. 5 R. N. COUDENHOVE-KALERGI, Der Kampf um Europa. Aus meinem Leben, Vienna 1949, 50. 6 R. N. COUDENHOVE-KALERGI, Ein Leben für Europa, Cologne – Vienna