I. Jewish Migration to and from Innsbruck in the Second Half of the 19th Century

Geographical Location and Historical Context

Austria's geographical location at the center of East-West and North-South trade routes has always favored immigration, emigration, and transit migration. The population growth of small and medium-sized towns, as well as the former Habsburg capital and residence cities, and their cultural diversity would be unthinkable without the immigration of migrants over the centuries. In 1867, the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy was established, consisting of two halves of the empire: Cisleithania and Transleithania. Cisleithania was increasingly and, from 1915 officially, referred to as "German Austria." Immigration had a significant influence on Austria's development. Migrants from all parts of Europe and beyond brought new ideas, skills, and cultures to the country. They contributed to Austria's economic prosperity, social change, and cultural enrichment.

Internal Migration and Persecution: The Fate of the Jewish Population

Internal migration into cities and industrial regions was accompanied by periods of expulsion and persecution of population groups, such as the Jews. Initially, they were encouraged to immigrate and were provided with letters of protection/privileges, but from the 14th century onwards, they were repeatedly persecuted, expelled, and in some cases even murdered at various intervals. These expulsions took place in Styria, Tyrol (1475), Carinthia (1496/97), and Salzburg (1498). In Vienna around 1582, the Jewish community itself had to ensure that the freed Jews living there participated in the "abolition of foreign Jews" from Venice, Poland, Bohemia, and Moravia. Around 1670, Emperor Leopold I once again expelled the Jews from Vienna and Austria. It was only the Edict of Tolerance (1782) by Joseph II that could improve the situation of Jews in Austria. As part of this decree, male Jews were conscripted for military service for the first time in 1788, initially in Galicia and expanded to the entire Austrian state territory in the same year. In contrast to many German states, there were Jewish officers in Austria in the 19th century.

Jewish Financiers and the Industrialization of Austria

The industrialization, which began late compared to the rest of Europe, and the dawn of the industrial age required enormous investment capital. This financial need was met by many Jewish bankers, merchants, and industrialists. One of them was Salomon Rothschild (1774-1855), founder of the Vienna branch of the family and involved in the establishment of the Austrian National Bank. His Jewish banking house with branches across Europe financed the construction of the Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway, which ran from Vienna to the Bochnia salt mine in Galicia. The expansion of modern transportation technology and connections led to a mass mobilization of labor in Austria.

II. Right of Domicile, Migration, and Social Tensions in the 19th Century

Tightening of Domicile Legislation after 1848

The extensive migration within the monarchy, along with the political events of the pre-March period and the revolution of 1848/49, led to a tightening of jurisdictional and domicile laws. Following the amendment of the law in 1863, this meant that only civil servants and wealthy individuals received the right of domicile in their new place of residence. These inequalities in granting domicile rights fueled general discontent, which could erupt in confrontations with migrants. These tensions were exacerbated by a growing sense of nationalism as well as resurgent racist and antisemitic currents.

The Basic State Law of 1867 and Its Significance for the Jewish Population

On December 21, 1867, a new Basic State Law on the general rights of citizens was enacted for the kingdoms and lands represented in the Imperial Council. It stipulated that every legally recognized church or religious society had the right to public religious practice and could independently regulate and administer its internal affairs (Articles 14-16). With the Basic State Law on the general rights of citizens of 1867, the Jewish population received unrestricted freedom of settlement for the first time.

Demographic Developments: Austria as a Country of Immigration

In the 19th century, the Austrian Alpine regions were an area of immigration. The total population growth between 1819 and 1913 was 3.9 million, of which approximately 1.3 million, corresponding to 35.1 percent, was attributable to migration. Female migrants, numbering 730,104, accounted for more than half of the migration gain. The average annual increase in immigration was estimated at 14,680 people. The majority of immigrants came from within the monarchy, leaving their regions of origin to pursue employment in the industrial conurbations.

Immigration Waves and the "1848 Emigration"

Two waves of immigration can be identified, one in the first third and a second in the final part of the 19th century. Overall, Austria was a country of immigration, but between 1848 and 1867, there was an emigration, the so-called "1848 emigration." The center of these emigration-prone groups was likely in the German-Tyrolean districts, with a loss of 19,000 persons.

Cultural Struggle in Tyrol and the Situation of Religious Minorities

Since the Protestant Patents of 1859 and 1861, the political situation in Tyrol was not only characterized by decades of resistance from clerical-conservative circles against the liberal government policy in the Imperial Council. A bitter cultural struggle was also waged at the expense of the Jewish and Protestant minority against their settlement, justified by appeals to the autonomy and religious unity of the land. The Innsbrucker Nachrichten reported in an article on February 27, 1860, that in Tyrol and Vorarlberg there lived 807,103 Catholics, 122 Protestants, and 978 Jews.

Grafik: ​Abblidung1 und 2:
Achrainer, Martin/Albrich, Thomas/Hofinger, Niko (Hrsg.):  Lebensgeschichten statt Opferlisten. Die biografische Datenbank zur jüdischen Bevölkerung in Tirol und Vorarlberg im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert – Forschungsbericht. Wien 1997, S. 288.

III. Social Tensions and Emerging Antisemitism in Innsbruck

Violent Attacks: The Desecration of the Jewish Cemetery

The mood in Innsbruck towards the Jewish population could be gauged from a newspaper report on February 18, 1861, which strongly condemned the desecration of the Jewish burial ground by unknown persons. On March 3, 1863, the same incident occurred again:
"Once more, malicious hands have vandalized the local Israelite cemetery, as tombstones were torn out and smashed at the entrance gate. Such a disgraceful act, born of the greatest fanaticism, must outrage every honorable thinking man!" (Innsbrucker Nachrichten, Feb. 18, 1861, and Mar. 3, 1862)

Career Migration: Jewish Professors at the University of Innsbruck

For the Jewish middle and upper classes, the type of career migration can be identified to a considerable extent. While no Jews were found in the public administration in Tyrol, from 1869 onward, several Jewish university professors came to the medical faculty in Innsbruck. One of these professors was Univ. Prof. Dr. Ludwig Mauthner (born 1840 in Prague – date of death unknown), who immigrated directly to Innsbruck in 1869. The "Innsbrucker Nachrichten" reported on the appointment of the 29-year-old professor of ophthalmology, who was the first Jew to receive a professorship at an Austrian university. In 1877, he transferred his permanent residence to Vienna.

The Politicization of Antisemitism at Universities

It was precisely at the universities that a political antisemitism began to spread since the 1880s, manifesting in student protests. In 1883, the Innsbruck fraternity "Suevia" was founded, whose members identified themselves as "Schönerianer." (Martin Achrainer, Juden und Jüdinnen in Tirol, pp. 225-303). It was observed that a social change was taking place in the host society, which, according to a newspaper report in the "Innsbrucker Nachrichten" in 1879, warned against Jewish merchants and peddlers who would allegedly pester the inhabitants of the city and surrounding villages in an intrusive manner to sell their goods.

Media Discreditation and the Preparation for Political Antisemitism

In this context, one had to see a new variant of prejudice against the Jewish minority in Tyrol. This initially consisted of imitating German and Viennese anti-Jewish publications, namely linking all elements of "modernity" in society, economy, and culture with Jews. In Tyrol, conservative forces had already lost their hegemonic dominance in the 1870s, not only politically but also culturally. In the 1880s, anti-Jewish attributes in reporting increased, such as "Juden-liberal," "verjudet" (Jewified), or simply the "Jewish press," to pave the way for a political antisemitism.

The Solidification of Prejudices and Stereotypes in the Majority Society

Gradually, rejection of Jewish fellow residents in Innsbruck by the majority society increased. In the minds of the majority, so-called stereotypes developed, which the Tübingen ethnologist Hermann Bausinger (1926) described as uncritical generalizations that were shielded from scrutiny, proved resistant to change, and had nothing to do with a scientific attitude. These prejudices served to structure perceptions, reducing diverse influences to a manageable level.

IV. Stereotypes, Antisemitism, and Societal Change around 1900

The Concept of the Stereotype and Its Societal Function

The term "stereotype" dates back to Walter Lippmann (1889-1974), who borrowed the name of a matrix duplication process to describe the pictures in our heads. They always referred to an anonymous collective, to the entirety of an ethnic group, such as peasants, Protestants, or Jews, and often served to demarcate and devalue the "Other." This created the foundation for so-called racial madness, antisemitism, and nationalism. The foreign was perceived as threatening, although it was recognized that engaging intensively with the "Other" could lead to better understanding, which would avoid racism or xenophobia.

The Normalization of Antisemitism in the Early 20th Century

By around 1900, antisemitism had reached an extent that had almost become a "cultural code" for broad strata of society. Public insults and vilifications no longer led to confiscation by the public prosecutor's office and charges of incitement to hatred as they had decades earlier, but instead received applause. Mockery and scorn towards Jewish fellow residents were commonplace in clubs, at regulars' tables, and in public administration. Between 1890 and 1910, a societal shift had taken place that enabled the acceptance of modern antisemitism. Although equality for Jews had been legally and personally protected before the state since 1867, they were, as a social group, defenseless against hostility.

Example: Antisemitic Boycott Calls in Innsbruck

On December 10, 1906, as every year, a leaflet was distributed in Innsbruck informing citizens about Jewish businesses:
"For Defense! For several years, a leaflet signed 'For the German Voters' Association for Tyrol: Dr. Fritz Lantschner, Dr. Friedrich Frank' has appeared in Innsbruck during Advent, with the purpose of informing the buying public about those businesses and enterprises which are run by Jews or baptized Jews (of Jewish descent). In the leaflet that appeared again on December 6 of this year 1906, among those 'recommended' for economic boycott was, among others, the firm Ernst Mayer, Pharmacy and Laboratory Supplies, Colingasse 9 and Bürgerstraße 7. The aforementioned, who has been resident here for 35 years, found himself compelled to publicly declare that he is neither Jewish nor belongs, even remotely, to a Jewish family."

Summary: Jewish Integration and Migration in the Habsburg Monarchy

In summary, it can be stated that initial approval from the majority, fostered by the political rule, was discernible regarding Jewish integration into local structures. The decision-making processes for migration movements of the Jewish population were significantly promoted by the legal prerequisites created by the Habsburg Dual Monarchy in 1867. The legal and political possibilities for influence were supplemented by the perception in the society of origin and the acceptance in the host society. Despite occasional attempts to define national identity from cultural tradition and apparent superiority, there was neither in Tyrol nor in Austria a cultural homogeneity. Throughout history, the movement of people across borders and the encounter of different cultures was not the exception but the rule. The motives for migration were mostly multifaceted, lying between the poles of autonomy in the sense of individual decision and coercion in the form of systemic logics, domination, or violence.

V. From "Cultural Code" to State Doctrine: The Radicalization of Antisemitism 

The hostility towards Jews, already fully normalized and routinely expressed around 1900, formed the poisonous breeding ground upon which the political antisemitism of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party could not only build in the following decades but radicalize it to murderous consequence. The prejudices already internalized as a "cultural code" and put into practice through boycott calls were systematically amplified, politicized, and elevated to a central state dogma by Hitler's racist, ethnic-völkisch ideology in the 1920s and 1930s. What circulated in Innsbruck in 1906 as an anonymous inflammatory leaflet became, under National Socialist rule from 1938 onwards, official and violently enforced policy: the complete exclusion, expropriation, expulsion, and finally the physical annihilation of the Jewish population. The path from tolerated insult to bureaucratically organized genocide was thus prefigured.