Recent history
The immediate precursor in the professional representation of writers' interests was the "Schutzverband deutsch-österreichischer Schriftsteller" (Protection Association of German-Austrian Writers), which existed for two decades in the First Republic and was led by Hugo von Hofmannsthal and Robert Musil, among others, and which broke away as a former branch of the German Protection Association, which had existed since 1910, and constituted itself as a separate association. The Schutzverband opposed censorship and stood up for the rights of authors. It was initially followed by nothing for many years after the reestablishment of the Republic of Austria after 1945.