Dr. Anton Granig

Anton Granig was born into a farming family in the middle of Mölltal. As he had to help on the local farm after elementary school and was involved in the war, he was only able to complete his A-levels at the state grammar school in Klagenfurt in 1928. In the same year, he joined the Klagenfurt seminary and enrolled to study theology. He was ordained a priest in 1932 and subsequently became chaplain in Viktring and Spittal. In 1934, he took a leave of absence as chaplain and went to the University of Graz, where he completed his doctorate in theology in 1936 with a dissertation on Paul as a pastor. He then became secretary and later head of the Carinthian St. Joseph's Brotherhood.

In July 1941, Anton Granig met lance corporal Eduard Pumpernig. Both are avowed Austrians and firmly reject National Socialism. They were soon joined by the Catholic Couleur student Karl Krumpl

After publishing several appeals to the Austrian people calling for a fight against National Socialism, they decided to found the "Antifascist Freedom Movement of Austria (AFÖ)" in March 1942. Including Social Democrats and Marxists, the aim was to establish a broad resistance movement to actively combat National Socialism. Resistance fighters were also found within the Wehrmacht and contacts were established with other groups. Another focus was on cooperation with Slovenian resistance fighters in order to win them over to the resistance struggle. In addition to the publication of anti-Nazi leaflets, explosives attacks and an assassination attempt on Gauleiter Rainer were planned.

After the Gestapo became aware of the group, Anton Granig was arrested on June 17, 1943 together with 13 other members of the Antifascist Freedom Movement of Austria. They were transferred to the provincial court in Vienna and tried before the People's Court for high treason on July 20, 1944. Due to the assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler, the trial is postponed until August. On August 11, 1944, Anton Granig, together with Wenzel Primosch, Karl Krumpl, Franz Bernthaler, Angelus Steinwender, Kapistran Pieller, Ernst Ortner and Georg Kofler were sentenced to death. The death sentence was justified on the grounds that Granig had 1. wanted to tear Carinthia and Austria away from the Reich, 2. with the leaflet propaganda and 3. for inciting people to set fires for political reasons. Others, such as Eduard Pumpernig, were sentenced to long prison terms.

On April 5, 1945, three weeks before the collapse of National Socialism, Anton Granig and 45 other prisoners are marched from the Vienna Provincial Court to Stein an der Donau, chained together in pairs. Eduard Pumpernig was part of the "escort team" that had to push the guards' carts. As the Red Army had already reached the right bank of the Danube in places, the train turned north towards Stockerau. In Großweikersdorf they are quartered in an inn, in Maissau in the stables of the old castle. The parish chronicle of Eggendorf am Walde mentions that Anton Granig was chained together with Angelus Steinwender. The train reached Stein on April 9.