Reichsgau Tyrol-Vorarlberg | |||||||||||||
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Reichsgau of Nazi Germany | |||||||||||||
1938–1945 | |||||||||||||
Map of Nazi Germany showing its administrative subdivisions ( Gaue and Reichsgaue ) | |||||||||||||
Capital | Innsbruck | ||||||||||||
Population | |||||||||||||
• 1939 | 330,892 | ||||||||||||
History | |||||||||||||
Government | |||||||||||||
Gauleiter | |||||||||||||
• 1938–1945 | Franz Hofer | ||||||||||||
History | |||||||||||||
12 March 1938 | |||||||||||||
8 May 1945 | |||||||||||||
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Today part of | Austria |
The Reichsgau Tyrol-Vorarlberg (German: Reichsgau Tirol-Vorarlberg) was an administrative division of Nazi Germany consisting of Vorarlberg and North Tyrol (both in Austria). It existed from 1938 to 1945. It did not include East Tyrol (Lienz), which was instead part of Reichsgau Carinthia.
After the Italian Armistice with the Allies the Italian provinces of Belluno, South Tyrol and Trentino were placed under direct German control as the Operational Zone of the Alpine Foothills (Operationszone Alpenvorland, OZAV), which was de facto annexed and administered as part of Tyrol-Vorarlberg. [1]
The Nazi Gau (plural Gaue) system was originally established in a party conference on 22 May 1926, in order to improve administration of the party structure. From 1933 onwards, after the Nazi seizure of power, the Gaue increasingly replaced the German states as administrative subdivisions in Germany. [2] On 12 March 1938 Nazi Germany annexed Austria and on 24 May the Austrian provinces were reorganized and replaced by seven Nazi party Gaue. [3] Under the Ostmarkgesetz law of 14 April 1939 with effect of 1 May, the Austrian Gaue were raised to the status of Reichsgaue and their Gauleiters were subsequently also named Reichsstatthalters . [2] [4]
At the head of each Gau stood a Gauleiter, a position which became increasingly more powerful, especially after the outbreak of the Second World War. Local Gauleiters were in charge of propaganda and surveillance and, from September 1944 onwards, the Volkssturm and the defence of the Gau. [5]
The position of Gauleiter in Tyrol-Vorarlberg was held by Franz Hofer throughout the Reichsgau's history from 1938 to 1945. [6] [7]
At the end of the Second World War, Tyrol-Vorarlberg became the French occupation zone in Austria.
Gau Bayreuth was an administrative division of Nazi Germany formed by the 19 January 1933 merger of Gaue in Lower Bavaria, Upper Palatinate and Upper Franconia, Bavaria. It was in existence from 1933 to 1945.
Gau Franconia was an administrative division of Nazi Germany in Middle Franconia, Bavaria, from 1933 to 1945. Before that, from 1929 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area. Originally formed as Middle Franconia in 1929, it was renamed Franconia in 1936.
The Gau Main Franconia, formed as Gau Lower Franconia on 1 March 1929 and renamed Gau Main Franconia on July 30, 1935, was an administrative division of Nazi Germany in Lower Franconia, Bavaria, from 1933 to 1945. Before that, from 1929 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area.
Gau East Prussia was an administrative division of Nazi Germany encompassing the province of East Prussia in the Free State of Prussia from 1933 to 1945. Before that, from 1925 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area, having been established at a conference in Königsberg on 6 December 1925. In 1939, Gau East Prussia expanded following the annexation of the Klaipėda Region from Lithuania and the occupation of Poland, while a sliver of territory from the gau was transferred to Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia. After Germany's attack on the USSR, the Belarusian city of Hrodna also became part of the Gau.
Gau Southern Hanover–Brunswick was a de facto administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945 in the Free State of Brunswick and part of the Free State of Prussia. Before that, from its formation on 1 October 1928 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area. Gau Southern Hanover-Brunswick was abolished after Germany's defeat in 1945. The territory after the war became part of Lower Saxony in West Germany.
The Reichsgau Styria was an administrative division of Nazi Germany consisting of areas in Styria, Lower Styria and southern parts of Burgenland. It existed from 1938 to 1945.
The Reichsgau Carinthia was an administrative division of Nazi Germany in Carinthia and East Tyrol and Upper Carniola in Slovenia. It existed from 1938 to 1945.
The Reichsgau Upper Danube was an administrative division of Nazi Germany, created after the Anschluss in 1938 and dissolved in 1945. It consisted of what is today Upper Austria, parts of Southern Bohemia, and a small part of the Salzkammergut which was annexed from Styria.
The Reichsgau Vienna was an administrative division of Nazi Germany based in Vienna, Austria. It existed between 1938 and 1945. Parts of Lower Austria were annexed to establish Greater Vienna, which then became the biggest city of Nazi Germany by area.
The Reichsgau Lower Danube was an administrative division of Nazi Germany consisting of areas in Lower Austria, Burgenland, southeastern parts of Bohemia, southern parts of Moravia, later expanded with Devín and Petržalka. It existed between 1938 and 1945.
The Reichsgau Salzburg was an administrative division of Nazi Germany in Salzburg, Austria. It existed between 1938 and 1945.
The Gau Westphalia-North was an administrative division of Nazi Germany encompassing the Free State of Lippe, the Free State of Schaumburg-Lippe and the northern half of the Prussian province of Westphalia between 1933 and 1945. From 1931 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party for these areas.
The Gau Württemberg-Hohenzollern, formed on 8 July 1925, was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945 in the German state of Württemberg and the Prussian province of Hohenzollern. Before that, from 1925 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area.
The Gau Saxony was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945 in the German state of Saxony. Before that, from 1926 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area.
The Gau Düsseldorf was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945 in the Düsseldorf region of the Prussian Rhine Province. Before that, from 1930 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area.
The Gau Essen was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945 in the northern parts of the Prussian Rhine Province. Before that, from 1928 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area.
The Gau Hesse-Nassau was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. It was formed by the merger of two separate Gaue comprising the People's State of Hesse and the southern parts of the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau that were, from 1927 to 1933, the regional subdivisions of the Nazi Party in those areas.
The Gau Westphalia-South was an administrative division of Nazi Germany encompassing the Arnsberg Region in the southern part of the Prussian province of Westphalia between 1933 and 1945. From 1931 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party for these areas.
The Gau Upper Silesia was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1945 in the Upper Silesia part of the Prussian Province of Silesia. The Gau was created when the Gau Silesia was split into Upper Silesia and Lower Silesia on 27 January 1941. The Gau included territory annexed by Nazi Germany after the German invasion of Poland.
The Gau Berlin was an administrative division of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945 in the German capital Berlin. Before that, from 1928 to 1933, it was the regional subdivision of the Nazi Party in that area. From 1926 to 1928 Berlin was part of the Gau Berlin-Brandenburg which was split into two separate Gaue on 1 October 1928.