Fraternity Tower

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Fraternity Tower (2012)

The fraternity tower (also connection tower ) is part of the Maximilian tower line in Linz, built in the early 19th century . As part of the Adelgunde hermitage, it represented the right connection between the fortifications and the Danube . Today it serves as a memorial and museum for the German fraternity .

History as Klause Adelgunde

Site plan of the Linz tower fortification

The Adelgunde Klause was built in the early 19th century due to the Napoleonic Wars as part of a fortification system that made Linz a fortified city with its 32 defense towers . Left and right of the Danube were the so-called connections: Situated on the shore was in each one Klause , it decided to follow a wall that led up the slope and on a waiting ended. Iron rings were walled into the Klausen, in which a chain could be hung to shut off the Danube. The Adelgunde Klause was connected to the Walpurga observation tower, which is no longer preserved, by a connecting wall, which is where the name of the connecting tower or connecting wall, which has always been known, comes from.

In 1858 the fortification was strategically obsolete and was abandoned.

History as a fraternity tower

The dilapidated hermitage was acquired in 1917 by Karl Beurle for the fraternity of the Ostmark in order to be designed as a memorial for the fallen of the First World War ; In addition, a memorial room was set up for the German university locations that were lost after 1918. In 1928 the German Burschenschaft declared that "the tower in Linz [...] would be expanded into a connection memorial".

In 1932 the inscription "One People , One Reich " was added for a consecration . After the annexation of Austria to the German Reich, the inscription was extended by the National Socialists to “One People, One Reich, One Leader ” for the “ Führer Birthday ” in 1939 . After 1945 it was removed.

After 1945, the memorial was extended to include those who died in the Second World War . The memorial slogan reads: "Fallen - missed - died of wounds - expelled - slain - spoiled in camps - for home and people - because they were Germans - so many thousands gave their lives" . From 1989 to 1990 and from 2001 to 2002 the tower was restored.

Monument protection

The "fortification tower" was placed under protection by decision of the State Monuments Office for Upper Austria Zl. 1037 of December 18, 1928.

At the end of 2006, the owner attached a large red logo of the "Deutsche Burschenschaft" without official approval. After this fact became known through a parliamentary inquiry in June 2018, the Federal Monuments Office was instructed to initiate a corresponding administrative procedure. As early as August 2018, two days after the Parliament was informed about the lack of approval, the Federal Monuments Office subsequently approved the affixed logo on the grounds that "plastic lettering originally existed at the relevant point, which was expanded during the time of the National Socialist regime. After the Second World War, the lettering was knocked off and a 'circle' (owner's logo) was attached. ”However, none of these words and symbols previously attached to the tower were approved under monument protection law.

meaning

Museum area inside the tower

For the German Burschenschaft "today the tower presents itself as a memorial for the fallen of both world wars, as a museum of fraternity history and fraternity ideas and as a memorial to the fact that there is a spiritual bond beyond borders and individual statehood, which extends to the entire German people. and cultural area. "

The documentation archive of the Austrian resistance describes the tower as “stone follow-up propaganda ” and thus as a “permanent violation of the State Treaty ”, which obliges Austria to stop large-scale German propaganda . It serves "the national ( German national to right-wing extremist ) milieu to this day as a place of pilgrimage and place of large-German propaganda".

gallery

  • Fraternity Tower (2005)

  • View from the other bank of the Danube (2010)

  • View of the tower from the other bank of the Danube. In the background the connecting wall (2006)

See also

literature

  • Gernot Pippan: The fraternity tower in Linz. Memorial and museum of the German fraternity. In: The lectures of the 11th Austrian Student History Conference Linz 1994. Vienna 1994, pp. 89–91 ( Contributions to Austrian student history. Volume 23, 1994) and also in: Burschenschaftliche Blätter 1990, pp. 36–38.
  • Harald Lönnecker : “The word grew huge: One people! A empire! ”The Linz connecting tower between national consciousness, hero cult and peace admonition. In: Yearbook for German and Eastern European Folklore. Volume 48, Marburg 2006, pp. 35-120.
  • Günter Cerwinka, Peter Kaupp , Harald Lönnecker, Klaus Oldenhage (eds.): 200 years of fraternity history: From Friedrich Ludwig Jahn to the Linz fraternity tower. Universitätsverlag Winter, Heidelberg 2008, ISBN 3825355071 , pp. 402-527.
  • Hans-Peter Weingand : "As we hear, the Führer is extremely happy with this monument ...". New aspects of the history of the Linz “fraternity tower”. In: Acta Studentica. Volume 45, episode 190, December 2014, pp. 3–12.
  • Hans-Peter Weingand: "Visibility of fraternity thought in public space". The Linz “fraternity tower” and the monument protection. In: Acta Studentica. Volume 50, episode 209, June 2019, pp. 12–15.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Gernot Pippan: The Burschenschafterturm in Linz. Memorial and museum of the German fraternity. In: Burschenschaftliche Blätter 1990, pp. 36–38.
  2. ^ Maria Dawid and Erich Egg : The Austrian Museum Guide in Color. Museums and collections in Austria. Frankfurt am Main 1991, p. 195.
  3. ↑ Erich Hillbrand: The towers of Linz. A fortress system from the 19th century. In: Historisches Jahrbuch der Stadt Linz 1984. Linz 1985, ISSN  0440-9736 , pp. 11-213 (as a special print: The Towers of Linz. Archduke Maximilian's system of fortifications for the monarchy. Archives of the City of Linz , Linz 1985), online (PDF ) in the forum OoeGeschichte.at.
  4. ^ Klaus Oldenhage: The fraternity tower in Linz on the Danube. In: Burschenschaftliche Blätter . 2007, p. 139.
  5. ↑ Handbook of the German Burschenschaft. Edition 2005, p. 35.
  6. ^ History of the fraternity tower. Retrieved April 17, 2019 .
  7. ↑ Answer to query 1091 / AB (XXVI.GP). (PDF; 607 kB) Austrian Parliament, August 22, 2018, accessed on August 29, 2018 .
  8. ↑ Answer to inquiry 2305 / AB (XXVI.GP). (PDF; 414 kB) Austrian Parliament, January 21, 2019, accessed on April 16, 2019 .
  9. ↑ Hans-Peter Weingand: "Visibility of fraternity thought in public space". The Linz “fraternity tower” and the monument protection. In: Acta Studentica. Austrian magazine for student history. Volume 50, episode 209, June 2019, pp. 12–15, especially p. 15.
  10. ^ German fraternity : The fraternity tower in Linz on the Danube
  11. ↑ No to the eternal fraternity-Kommers in Linz! ( Memento of October 12, 2007 in the Internet Archive ). In: doew.at . July 1, 2012.
  12. ^ Linz: Excitement about fraternity meetings. In: The press . September 11, 2007.


Coordinates: 48 ° 18 ′ 29 ″  N , 14 ° 14 ′ 44 ″  E