Josef Weinheber

Josef Weinheber (9 March 1892 in Vienna – 8 April 1945 in Kirchstetten, Lower Austria) was an Austrian lyric poet, narrative writer and essayist.

However, the forty odes comprising the cycle "Zwischen Göttern und Dämonen" (Between Gods and Demons) of 1938 are considered his poetical masterpiece.

He received numerous honors and awards, and was included by Adolf Hitler on the list of 1,041 Gottbegnadeten or "divinely gifted" Nazi artists who were exempt from war service on account of their cultural importance.

Falling prey to alcohol during the later events of the War, he committed suicide in April 1945 by taking an overdose of morphine[2] at the time of the advancing Red Army and Germany's impending defeat.

Auden acknowledges Weinheber's support of Nazism but also records his reply to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels' offer to enrich Austrian culture: "in Ruah lossen" ("leave us alone").