History of Austria wanting to annex the country to the German Third Reich, resulting in the assassination of Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss. While the coup failed, Adolf Hitler succeeded in annexing Austria on 12 March 1938 as "Ostmark", until 1945. Austria was partitioned after the Second World War and then in 1955 became the independent sovereign state (Second Republic) that has existed to the present day. In 1995, Austria joined the European Union. The modern state of Austria is considered to have three geographic zones. The biggest third consists of the Alps, which covers 62.8% of the country's landmass. In the north, across the
John Clarke (socialist politician) John Clarke (socialist politician) John Smith Clarke (4 February 1885 – 30 January 1959) was a British lion tamer, politician, poet, newspaper editor and art expert. John Smith Clarke was born in Jarrow, the 13th of 14 children, whose father was a ticket and poster writer, living in Heaton Park Road South. Clarke had a great interest in a local circus, and by the age of seventeen would visit the lion tamer and enter the lion's cage, a practice he continued for the rest of his life. While mostly a writer, he also became a sailor, and was able to