Letters supporting Nazi regime found under Austrian war memorial

-

A pro-Nazi text has been discovered under a statue at a war memorial in Vienna, Austrian officials say.

The document - expressing hopes of the German people's unification under the Sonnenrad - a reference to the Nazi swastika - was found in a capsule under the statue of the Unknown Soldier, the BBC reported on Friday.

It was put there by sculptor Wilhelm Frass in 1935 - three years before Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany. The metal capsule has now been removed, and the memorial will be redesigned.

For years the war memorial has been dogged by rumors that a Nazi document had been hidden there.

The pro-Nazi text was unearthed after an investigation ordered by Austrian Defense Minister Norbert Darabos. Speaking of the find the minster said "We can rightly speak of this as a sensational find."

The contradictory messages found in the statue express "the ambivalence of the era" according to historian Heidemarie Uhl.

The first message, written by pro-Nazi sculptor Wilhelm Frass, dated April 8, 1935, mentions "the eternal strength of the German people" and notes "May the Lord, after the horrors, after all the humiliation, end the unspeakable and sad killing between brothers and lead our noble people united under the banner of the black sun! So, comrades, you will not fall in vain. "

Yet the second letter has a more pacifist view; signed by sculptor Alfons Riedel, probably Frass' assistant. Riedel wrote: "I hope that future generations will no longer place our nation in a position where they need to erect monuments to fallen soldiers who fall in violent clashes between nations."


After further analysis, the documents will be delivered to the Museum of Military History in Vienna.

Ynet

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Huge Japan Quake Cracked Open Seafloor

-
The March 2011 megaquake off the coast of Japan opened up fissures as wide as 6 feet (3 meters) in the seafloor, a new study finds. The fissures now scar the seafloor where peaceful clam beds once lay, according to Takeshi Tsuji, a researcher at Kyoto University in Japan . Along with seismic studies, the fissures, revealed by manned submersible vehicles that investigated the seafloor after the quake, show how the crust around the quake's epicenter expanded and cracked.
Read more

Index for a million documents on Polish Jewry to go online

-
Researchers of Polish Jewry are set to gain online access to more than 1 million new documents following an agreement signed by the Polish State Archives. Under the agreement signed last week, Jewish Records Indexing-Poland will receive indices to the documents from the Polish archives authority and place them on the website of the online database within one year, a JRI-Poland statement read.
Read more

A lot of the bread in the US will no longer be kosher

-
The largest baking company in the United States will be removing kosher certification from nearly all of its bread and rolls. Bimbo Bakeries USA confirmed to JTA that it will be removing the certification. The company produces brands including Arnold, Sara Lee, Stroehmann, Freihofer’s and others. Two of its major brands, Entenmann’s and Thomas, will remain certified kosher. So, kosher eaters, your crumb doughnuts and English muffins are still safe. A couple of rye breads also will retain their certifications. “Removing the kosher certification from some of our products was strictly a business-process decision to enable more efficient operations, and it was one we did not make lightly,” Bimbo said in a statement. “Thomas’ and Entenmann’s products as well as Arnold’s and Levy’s Rye Breads will remain kosher-certified. It is important to note that we have heard our consumers’ concerns and are working with kosher certification organizations and discussing alternative solutions.” The c
Read more