Koloman Wallisch (28 February 1889 in Lugosch,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

(today Lugoj,

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

) – 19 February 1934 in Leoben,

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 ...

) was a

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

labor leader and revolutionary in Austria. Wallisch was national secretary of the Austrian socialist party SPÖ and a delegate in the Austrian national assembly from 1930 to 1934. After calling for a general strike in 1934, he took to arms and tried to take over

Bruck an der Mur Bruck an der Mur is a city of some 13,500 people located in the district Bruck-Mürzzuschlag, in the Austrian state of Styria. It is located at the confluence of the Mur and Mürz Rivers. Its manufacturing includes metal products and paper. Br ...

during the

Austrian Civil War The Austrian Civil War (german: Österreichischer Bürgerkrieg), also known as the February Uprising (german: Februarkämpfe), was a few days of skirmishes between Austrian government and socialist forces between 12 and 16 February 1934, in Aust ...

. After the Austrian national guard was approaching the city, he fled into the mountains with 320 followers to wage guerrilla warfare. However, he was captured by the authorities on 18 February 1934 and after a brief interrogation and trial, he was executed by

Josef Lang Josef may refer to *Josef (given name) *Josef (surname) * ''Josef'' (film), a 2011 Croatian war film *Musik Josef Musik Josef is a Japanese manufacturer of musical instruments. It was founded by Yukio Nakamura, and is the only company in Japan spe ...

using an Austrian version of the

Garrote A garrote or garrote vil (a Spanish word; alternative spellings include garotte and similar variants''Oxford English Dictionary'', 11th Ed: garrotte is normal British English spelling, with single r alternate. Article title is US English spellin ...

( Würgegalgen) in the courtyard of Leoben. There is a first-hand account of his arrest, trial and execution in the ''Vienna Diary'' of

Naomi Mitchison Naomi Mary Margaret Mitchison, Baroness Mitchison (; 1 November 1897 – 11 January 1999) was a Scottish novelist and poet. Often called a doyenne of Scottish literature, she wrote over 90 books of historical and science fiction, travel writin ...

, published shortly after her return to Britain in 1934. After World War II, three Austrian cities – Leoben,

and

Kapfenberg Kapfenberg , with around 22,609 inhabitants, is the third largest city in Styria, Austria, near Bruck an der Mur. The town's landmark is Burg Oberkapfenberg. Its main employer is the steel manufacturer Böhler. The town has a swimming complex, ...

– named city squares in his honor and

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

wrote a poem about his struggles. In 1983, a movie was made documenting his life and times.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wallisch, Koloman 1889 births 1934 deaths Austrian Civil War People from Lugoj Social Democratic Party of Austria politicians Mayors of places in Austria Austrian anti-fascists Executed Austrian people Executed politicians Executed revolutionaries Civilians who were court-martialed People executed by armed forces People executed by Austria by hanging