Third Josef Hoop cabinet

Third Josef Hoop cabinet
Government of Liechtenstein
Date formed	30 March 1938 (1938-03-30)
Date dissolved	9 November 1944 (1944-11-09)
People and organisations
Head of state	Franz Joseph II
Head of government	Josef Hoop
Deputy head of government	Alois Vogt
Total no. of members	5
Member parties	FBP VU
Status in legislature	Coalition 15 / 15 (100%)
History
Election	1939
Predecessor	Second Josef Hoop cabinet
Successor	Fourth Josef Hoop cabinet

The third Josef Hoop cabinet was the governing body of Liechtenstein from 30 March 1938 to 9 November 1944. It was appointed by Franz Joseph II and chaired by Josef Hoop. The cabinet was formed as a coalition government following the Anschluss of Austria in 1938, and it oversaw the majority of World War II before being succeeded in 1944.

History

See also: Ellhorn, 1939 Liechtenstein putsch, and Liechtenstein in World War II

Following the Anschluss of Austria in March 1938, Franz I named his grand-nephew Franz Joseph his regent. ^[1] The Progressive Citizens' Party and Patriotic Union formed a coalition government formed to prevent government deadlock and help retain Liechtenstein's neutrality, overseen by Franz Joseph II. ^{[2] [3] [4]} As a result, the Second Josef Hoop cabinet was succeeded with Josef Hoop continuing as Prime Minister of Liechtenstein. ^[5]

Starting from 1938, the cabinet was faced with the challenge of pressure to transfer the Ellhorn mountain to Switzerland. Though Hoop was supportive of the transfer, he argued that the country should be fairly compensated for the loss of territory, such as the transfer of Swiss land elsewhere or greater banking cooperation between the two countries. The proposition faced resistance from the residents in Balzers, and was not approved by Franz Joseph II. ^{[6] [7]} Also facing unofficial objections from Nazi Germany, Hoop was forced to end the negotiations with Switzerland. ^[8]

The 1939 Liechtenstein general election was not made public due to the country being under threat from Nazi Germany. It became known as the "silent election" as no voting actually took place; instead, the Progressive Citizen's Party and Patriotic Union used it to assign roughly an equal number of seats to each other in order to prevent the German National Movement in Liechtenstein (VBDL) from gaining any seats in the Landtag. ^[9] As a result, the Hoop cabinet was now made out of several members of both parties. ^[5] The government was placed under threat when the VBDL attempted a coup in March 1939, first trying to provoke a intervention from Nazi Germany by burning swastikas, followed by declaring Liechtenstein's annexation into Germany. The leaders were almost immediately arrested and the planned German invasion failed to materialise. ^{[10] [11]}

During World War II, Liechtenstein remained neutral. ^[12] Hoop's government considered non-binding, non-provocative diplomacy to be appropriate towards Nazi Germany, supplemented by courtesy gestures. In 1940, during a lecture in Stuttgart, Hoop showed respect for the German armies. ^[13] At the same time, the country tied itself as closely as possible to Switzerland during the war in hopes of retaining the country's neutrality. ^[14] It achieved the de-facto inclusion of Liechtenstein in the Swiss national supply. ^[13]

At the request of Franz Joseph II on 9 November 1944, the cabinet was dissolved and succeeded by the Fourth Josef Hoop cabinet. ^[5]

Members

	Picture	Name	Term	Party
Prime Minister
		Josef Hoop	30 March 1938 – 9 November 1944	Progressive Citizens' Party
Deputy Prime Minister
		Alois Vogt	30 March 1938 – 9 November 1944	Patriotic Union
Government councillors
		Anton Frommelt	30 March 1938 – 9 November 1944	Progressive Citizens' Party
		Arnold Hoop	30 March 1938 – 27 December 1940	Patriotic Union
		Johann Georg Hasler	13 August 1941 – 9 November 1944	Patriotic Union

See also

• Politics of Liechtenstein

References

1. "Prince Franz to Return to Estate". Daily News. 1 April 1938. p. 216. Archived from the original on 20 April 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Liechtenstein's Prince Franz Josef II, 83". Los Angeles Times . 15 November 1989. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
3. "Parties in Liechtenstein 1921-1943". Prince and People: Liechtenstein Civics (in German). 2007. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
4. Marxer, Wilfried (31 December 2011). "Patriotic Union (VU)". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 14 May 2023.
5. Vogt 1987.
6. Meier, Günther (11 December 2023). "Die Angst vor feindlichen Truppen: Wie die «Loreley des Alpenrheins» den Besitzer wechselte". Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 30 March 2024.
7. Geiger 1997, p. 300–311.
8. Büchel, Donat (31 December 2011). "Ellhorn". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 19 March 2024.
9. Nohlen & Stöver 2010, p. 1159 & 1179.
10. Büchel, Donat (31 December 2011). "Anschlussputsch". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 14 November 2023.
11. "Liechtenstein Jails Nazi For Attempt at Uprising". The New York Times . 27 April 1939. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
12. Marxer, Roland (31 December 2011). "Neutralität". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 28 September 2023.
13. Geiger, Peter (31 December 2011). "Hoop,_Josef_(1895–1959)". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 26 October 2022.
14. Streitwireless, Clarence (10 April 1938). "GUARANTEE SOUGHT BY LIECHTENSTEIN; Principality Wants to Join Switzerland if Powers Fail to Back Independencece GERMAN INVASION FEARED". The New York Times . Retrieved 16 May 2023.

Bibliography

• Geiger, Peter (1997). Liechtenstein in den Dreissigerjahren 1928–1939 (in German) (1st ed.). Zürich: Liechtenstein Institute. ISBN   3-906393-28-3.
• Nohlen, Dieter; Stöver, Philip (2010). Elections in Europe: A data handbook. Nomos. ISBN   978-3-8329-5609-7.
• Vogt, Paul (1987). 125 Jahre Landtag (in German). Vaduz: Landtag of the Principality of Liechtenstein.