Anarchism in Austria-Hungary

The powerful Radical faction of Austria-Hungary's Social Democratic Party was anarchist in all but name until 1884, and anarchist ideas penetrated deeply into the trade unions throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In fact, from 1880 to 1884, Austria-Hungary had the strongest anarchist movement in Europe, with the exception of France and Italy. It was also at this time that the highly influential Bohemian intellectual Joseph Peukert began publishing his anarcho-communist paper Zukunft in Vienna.

Surprised at the growing influence of anarchism on Austrian society, the police started to violently suppress all meetings of anarchists and socialist in 1882. The anarchists fought back and many police were killed. Finally, in January 1884, the authorities became so disturbed by the spread of anarchist propaganda and the increase in violent clashes between police and revolutionaries that they declared a state of siege in Vienna and promulgated special decrees against anarchists and socialists. The anarchist leader Stellmacher was murdered and so the rest, including Peukert, fled the country. From that moment on anarchism ceased to be a movement of any significance in Austria.

References

Read More