Franz Kain (10 January 1922 – 27 October 1997) was an

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n writer and politician. He was born in

Bad Goisern Bad or BAD may refer to: Common meanings *Evil, the opposite of moral good * Erroneous, inaccurate or incorrect *Unhealthy, or counter to well-being *Antagonist, the threat or obstacle of moral good Acronyms * BAD-2, a Soviet armored trolley ...

and was educated locally. He apprenticed as a carpenter but quit and worked as a woodcutter. At the age of 14, he was arrested for distributing leaflets for the communist youth organization and imprisoned for three weeks. Following the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

, he was arrested again in 1941 and was later pressed into service in the German 999th Light Afrika Division. From April 1942 to March 1946, he was held in custody by the Americans as a prisoner of war. When he returned to Austria, Kain began working as a journalist for the newspaper ''Die Neue Zeit'' in

Linz Linz ( , ; cs, Linec) is the capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria. In the north of the country, it is on the Danube south of the Czech border. In 2018, the population was 204,846. In 2009, it was a European Capital of ...

. From 1953 to 1956, he was a correspondent for the newspaper '' Volksstimme'' in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. He married Margit Gröblinger in 1961. The couple's daughter Eugenie also became a writer. In 1954, his story "Die Lawine" appeared in the anthology ''Der Kreis hat einen Anfang''. Kain's essays have appeared in various anthologies and journals. His work has been translated into Czech, Russian and Ukrainian. He joined the

Communist Party of Austria The Communist Party of Austria (german: Kommunistische Partei Österreichs, KPÖ) is a communist party in Austria. Established in 1918 as the Communist Party of Republic of German-Austria, German-Austria (KPDÖ), it is one of the world's oldest ...

(KPO) in 1936. From 1977 to 1986, he served on the council for the (KPO) in Linz. Kain received the

Decoration for Services to the Liberation of Austria The Decoration for Services to the Liberation of Austria (german: Ehrenzeichen für Verdienste um die Befreiung Österreichs) was created by federal law on 27 January 1976. It is a special distinction for men and women who actively resisted the Na ...

, the Silver Medal from the Republic of Austria and the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

from the Soviet Union. For his literary works, he was awarded the Preis des Kulturministers of the

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, the

Theodor Körner Prize The Theodor Körner Prize (German: ''Theodor-Körner-Preis'') is a set of annual Austrian awards bestowed by the Theodor Körner Fund in recognition of cultural and/or scientific advances. The prize is awarded at the University of Vienna. The priz ...

and the

Kulturpreis des Landes Oberösterreich The Kulturpreis des Landes Oberösterreich (Culture Prize of the Province of Upper Austria) is awarded as a prize by the Province of Upper Austria. The prize is endowed with 7,500 euros and is awarded annually in several categories. References

. Kain died in Linz at the age of 75.

Selected works

Source: * ''Romeo und Jula an der Bernauerstraße'', stories (1954) * ''Die Lawine'', novel (1959) * ''Der Föhn bricht ein'', novel (1962) * ''Die Donau fließt vorbei'', short stories (1969) * ''Der Weg zum Ödensee'', stories (1973) * ''Das Ende der Ewigen Ruh'', novel (1978) * ''Das Schützenmahl'', stories (1986) * ''Im Brennesseldickicht'', stories (1989) * ''Der Schnee war warm und sanft'', stories (1989) * ''In Grodeck kam der Abendstern'', novel (1994)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kain, Franz 1922 births 1997 deaths People from Bad Goisern 20th-century Austrian novelists Austrian male short story writers Communist Party of Austria politicians 20th-century Austrian journalists German Army personnel of World War II Austrian military personnel of World War II German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States