Searching for traces in Graz: The forgotten Nazi past of Styrian buildings

Searching for traces in Graz: The forgotten Nazi past of Styrian buildings

In Graz there is currently an exciting examination of the dark history of the National Socialist past. As part of the research project “Contaminated Heritage?”, Which is carried out by the Federal Immobillery Society (BIG) in cooperation with the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for War Consequences Research and the University of Graz, properties in Styria and Vienna are examined in more detail. These buildings have a burdened history of use from the Nazi era and are not only testimonies of the past, but also places that should keep memories of injustice and suffering. MeinDärzirk reports that the project is running from early 2024 to autumn 2025 and targeted 21 Steirian buildings.

The most important objects include Paulustorgasse 8, 10 and 12 and Parkring 4 in Graz, which once served as a police department and Gestapo headquarters. Over 100 people worked for the Gestapo here, and the remains of the interrogations and torture methods are still present today. Thousands of people were tortured and interrogated here, and more than 45,000 arrests were counted until the end of the war - more than half of them political prisoners. A Jewish lawyer, Ludwig Biró, documented the atrocities in this detention center, and yet the memory of the place is largely faded today. Only a small plaque is reminiscent of the sad events.

The responsibility of the past

The critical reappraisal of the Nazi past is not only limited to Graz. On March 5, 2025, a much -noticed event was held as a culture of memory in Graz, which was implemented as part of the 2025 - 80 years at the end of the Second World War. The event also included a panel discussion about the Gestapo headquarters in Graz and the handling of the contaminated heritage. Experts and visitors discussed intensively on the individual and collective responsibility that grows from this story. Moderated by Martin Haidinger (Ö1), Sibylle Dienesch, Director of the Graz Museum, and Barbara Stelzl-Marx, head of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for War Consequences Research, shared her thoughts on the importance of history. The Ludwig Boltzmann Institut emphasizes how important it is to make the invisible traces of the Nazi system visible.

You also emphasize that dealing with the past is a commitment to society as a whole and that the BIG bears a special responsibility here. In the past, some of our courts, such as the district court in Deutschlandsberg, also had a questionable role in which political opponents were taken into "protective custody", led by a "reliable National Socialist". historical reviews show that the work-up of National Socialism in society.

exhibitions and ongoing discussions

The historical context is highlighted by exhibitions such as "Hitler's executive. The Austrian police and National Socialism" in the Graz Museum. This exhibition is a result of the research project "The police in Austria: breaks and continuities 1938–1945" and questions the role of the police under National Socialism. The finissage was a place of exchange, which deals with questions about responsibility and perpetrators as well as the memory of the resistance. Even if the view of the history has changed over the years, the challenge remains to continue the processing of these dark chapters. This is how the exhibition will be continued in the Carinthia.Museum Klagenfurt .

Overall, it can be seen that dealing with the Nazi past in Graz and beyond that remains a fundamental part of our cultural identity. The responsibility that grows from history should never be lost sight of - only in this way can we teach and promote empathetic coexistence.