Reference:
RK 19694 B
Berlin 13 October 1938.
1. Note:
The Reich Fuehrer SS and Chief of the German Police submits with letter of 10 August 1938, received here 26 September 1938, 7 inventories concerning property and objects of art confiscated and sequestered respectively in Austria, also 10 albums of photographs, 1 catalogue and 1 certificate. While the albums of photographs and the catalogue are available in the office, the inventories and the certificate are attached.
Of special importance is the general inventory named under 6 of the letter. This inventory lists a total of 162 cases of confiscation. For 49 of them the value is not listed. For the remaining 113 a value amounting to 93.366.358.24 marks is named. Among them are the following properties with a value of 500.000.00 marks and more:
1. Palace including grounds and forest of the Jew Rudolf Gutmann.
33.000.000.00
153
2. 7 estates of the family property of the House Habsburg and Lothringen as well as 4 villas and 1 palace of Otto V. Habsburg. 21.077.655.00
3. Property value of the National Front [Vaterlaendische Front] and its subordinate formations. 8.505.500.00
4. Cash and valuables confiscated by the State Police Main Office in Vienna. 3.902.319.24
5. Wholesale business of the firm Wm. Abeles & Co. (non-Aryan). 3.500.000.00
6. Hotel "Metropole". 2.000.000.00
7. Chemical factory of the Jew Dr. Ignatz Kreidel. 2.000.000.00
8. Knitting and wool factory of the Jew Altmann. 2.000.000.00
9. Sanitorium Edlach (former proprietors Louis and Marietta Rosen). 1.800.000.00
10. Leather factory and villa, etc. of Jew Fritz Spiegler. 1.500.000.00
11. Schwadorf cotton spinning works of the Jew Dr. Poliak. 1.368.000.00
12. 1.700 automobiles. 1.020.000.00
13. 2 hotels, etc. of Jew Stiassmy. 1.000.000.00
14. Palace Leopoldskron (former proprietor Max Reinhardt). 700.000.00
15. Cash confiscated by the State Police Office Eisenstadt. 651.762.00
16. 140 drilling wells, Joch German Petroleum Co., etc. of Jew Poeller. 658.410.00
17. 55 mountain lodges of "Bergfreunde" formerly "Naturfreunde". 500.000.00
18. Villa of Jew Reitlinger. 500.000.00
85.683.718.24
There are to be noted furthermore:
1. Cash and valuables of Alwine Dollfuss,
valued at 8.200.00
2. Villa of the former Austrian Minister
Zernatto. 120.000.00
3. Villa, etc. of the former Minister of
Finance, Dr. Drexler. Value Unknown
3446-PS
3446-PS
The art objects sequestered in Vienna are included in the inventory described as Vienna album. Most of them are part of the Rothschild property, that is the numbers 1 to 56, 58 to 60, 62 to 69, 79, 112, 113, 119, 123 to 130, 132 to 137, and 139 to 149, while the others are the property of:
Viktor V. Ephrussi, No. 57, 71, 81-87, 116-118 and 120-122 Schenker, No. 61, 74, 75, 80, 108 and 138 Schweiger No. 70 and 109-111 .
Poliak, No. 72, 106, 107 and 131 Thorsch, No. 73, 89-97 and 114 Spiegler, No. 77, 78, 99-102, 104 and 105 Fuerst, No. 150-161.
The art objects sequestered from Max Reinhardt, Palace Leopoldskron near Salzburg. Dr. Herz in Villa Herz near St. Gilgen, Moritz Bonn in Villa Bonn in Parsch near Salzburg and Dr. Hess in Bad Gastein are listed in special inventories.
According to the titles of the inventory the art objects are only
sequestered and secured. '
Confiscation has been made in favor of various offices: Austria, Reich Fuehrer SS, NSDAP, Armed Forces, Lebensborn and others.
In my opinion a decision of the Fuehrer concerning the confiscated property pre-supposes intensive preliminary work. An office will have to be given the task to make proposals for use. In that respect, 2 questions will need clarification:
a. As a rule, should those offices in whose favor confisca-cation has been made retain the property assigned to them?
b. Should all works of art which are only "sequestered'1 far be confiscated?
so
Both questions are connected with the intended regulation of confiscation of property of enemies of the people and state in Austria.
2. Submitted to the Reich Minister. I may refer to the note to Rk 20323, submitted simultaneously, (draft of a decree concerning the confiscation of property of enemies of the people and the state in Austria).
' [Initials illegible]
155
Memorandum on estates, businesses, money, art objects, and other valuables sequestered from Jews and others in Austria, with proposals for their evaluation, confiscation, and use
Date: 13 October 1938
Defendant: Arthur Seyss-Inquart
Total Pages: 2
Language of Text: English
Source of Text: Nazi conspiracy and aggression (Office of United States Chief of Counsel for Prosecution of Axis Criminality. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Government Printing Office, 1946.)
Evidence Code: PS-3446
HLSL Item No.: 453274
Notes:The memo is not signed. The properties included seven estates of the Habsburg family. This document was apparently not entered as evidence. For Hitler's approval of the confiscation of the properties, see document PS 3447.