1. During World War II, roughly 100 Austrian emigrees and (Jewish) refugees served in the 10^th U.S. Mountain Division, at that time a completely new type of “ski troops” in the United States, specializing in mountain and winter warfare. Mostly highly skilled refugee soldiers, this cohort joined the the alliied fight against National Socialism, and served as ski & climbing instructors in the ranges of Washington and Colorado to prepare the unit for its upcoming battle against the Wehrmacht in Italy, which was as successful as it was bloody. In his talk, Florian Traussnig will present this transatlantic story of exile, resistance and cultural transfer.

Though not free of contradictions, the often voluntary and in some cases deadly contribution of the Austrian-born mountain fighters and ski stars to the U.S. war effort is a significant part of the military “resistance from outside” against the Nazi regime and a contribution to the struggle for freedom and the liberation of Europe.