Austria's story told: ORF starts third of the third!

Austria's story told: ORF starts third of the third!

Wien, Österreich - The ORF starts on May 1, 2025 with the third season of the celebrated documentation series "Austria - The whole History". This season, which was awarded the renowned Hugo Portic Prize, includes ten new episodes that examine the political and social upheavals from the founding of the first republic to the recovery of the sovereignty of Austria in 1955. The series is moderated by Mariella Gittler and Andreas Pfeifer, who will lead the viewer through the historical development of Austria.

The first two episodes on May 1st will deal with the "birth of the republic" and the topic of "war and progress". Other central issues include the political conflicts of the Junge Republic, the struggle for equality for women and the effects of the global economic crisis in 1931, which led to the establishment of the dictatorship by Engelbert Dollfuss in 1933. The propaganda of the National Socialists and the resistance to the Nazi regime also find their place in this season.

The way to sovereignty

A decisive topic of the third season will be the way to sovereignty, which is associated with the Austrian state contract. On May 15, 1955, this contract was signed in Vienna to restore Austria as a sovereign state. Negotiations on the state contract began after the end of the Second World War when Austria was occupied by the Allies on April 27, 1945.

The negotiations were a direct episode of the Moscow explanation of October 30, 1943, in which Austria was the first victim of the National Socialist aggression. It was only after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953 and a breakthrough in February 1955 that negotiations with the Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov were brought to a positive conclusion.

neutrality as a basic principle

A central element of the state contract was the obligation to neutrality, which was declared on October 26, 1955 by the parliament. This neutrality was particularly important for the Soviet Union to ensure that Austria does not join NATO. For the western signatous powers, it was essential that Austria remains a western democracy and continues political and economic West integration. October 26 has been established as a national holiday in Austria since then, originally celebrated as a day of the flag until 1965.

All episodes of the new season will also be available via ORF ON, so that interested parties have the opportunity to deal with the complex and multifaceted history of Austria at any time. You can find more information on [tv.orf.at/orf3] (https://www.ots.at/presseaus-sung/ots_20250428_ots0054/oesterreich-die-geschichte-staffel- von-staffel-drei-drei-dorf-Historicalprojekt-Ada holiday).

For more details about the Austrian State Treaty and its importance, please also visit the pages Wikipedia and [Parlament.gv.at] (https://www.parlament.gv.at/ver standen/historisches/1945-1995/staatstriag).