Memorial for the Victims of Nazi Military Justice
The Memorial for the Victims of Nazi Military Justice was inaugurated on 24 October 2014. It is located at the Ballhausplatz in the centre of Vienna, opposite the President's office and the Austrian Chancellory. The monument was created by German conceptual artist Olaf Nicolai. The inscription atop the three-step sculpture features the poem by Scottish poet Ian Hamilton Finlay consisting of just two words: all alone.Of the Germans and Austrians who deserted the Wehrmacht, 15,000 men were executed. In contrast only 18 Germans who deserted in the first world war were executed. Approximately 10 percent of all victims of Nazi Military Justice were Austrians.
In June 1988 the Initiative for the Creation of a Memorial to Deserters came to life in Ulm and Neu Ulm. A central idea was, "Desertion is not reprehensible, war is".
