The Sound of Music and the Von Trapp Family

Unfortunately today I got a migrane half way through class so I ended up having to go home so I missed the bus tour with Dr. O and the wine garden.  However, I took this time to re-watch the Sound of Music.  This was the first time I had really watched at this movie from a largely historic/ cultural perspective instead of simply as a very entertaining musical.  Looking at the movie in this way led me to appreciate The Sound of Music in a very different way then I had in the past because I noticed a lot more of the historic and cultural details.  Also, watching the musical this time around I started to ask questions about the plot and setting, which I had not done in the past.

My first question was just how closely the plot of The Sound of Music was to the story of the actual Von Trapp family?
Going off of,  http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2005/winter/von-trapps.html, http://www.trappfamily.com/story, and http://www.the-sound-of-music-guide.com/von-trapp-family.html, these are the facts that I have learned about the actually Von Trapp family who were exceedingly different from how they were portrayed in the movie.
Maria was not a governess to all of the von Trapp children.  Instead, beginning in 1926 she was actually only a tutor for one of the children although she apparently fell in love with all of the children.
Maria was reported as having said that she did not love Captain Von Trapp when they married.  Instead she married him because of her affection for his children.  She did however say that she fell deeply in love with him after their marriage.
Georg was not at all like his character in the movie.  Instead, he is said to have been a kind and caring parent to his children.  Maria and his children were apparently quite displeased by the negative way he was portrayed in The Sound of Music.
Maria also was not entirely like her character either.  Unlike the continuously sweet Maria played by Julie Andrews, the real Maria actually did have a temper, which she lost quite often although she supposedly always recovered her good humor quickly.
The ages, sexes, and names of the real von Trapp family were changed for the film.
The von Trapps did not sneak over the Alps on foot in order to flee the Nazis.  Instead, they traveled by train through Italy, where Georg was actually a citizen, and eventually ended up in America.
Max, a fictional character, was not the one to arrange for the family to perform.  Instead, this job belonged to Father Franz Wasner.

I found all of these facts about this real family just as fascinating as the story of the von Trapp family that was created for the film.  Although I must admit that I still have a very large soft spot for the watercolored family that is prone to random dance and musical numbers just because I have always been a very large sucker for musicals and happy endings.

Next, at one point Rolfe mentions that Austrians should be Germans however, the Captain obviously does not believe this.  I know that there were Austrians who had ideologies similar to both of these men but I began to wonder just how many wanted to become Germans, how many did not welcome Germany, and how many were not particular one way or the other.

While researching the real von Trapp family, I found out that one of the aspect of Georg that they did get correct was his dislike and distaste for the Nazi regime.  Similarly to in the movie, the real Captain also refused to fly the Nazi flag on his house and he did indeed decline a naval command.  From the reading, I have come to understand that that Georg was not alone in his thinking, but obviously, he was also not unopposed.

The debate about whether or not Austria should be apart of Germany was not a new one that developed after World War I.  Indeed, since both modern countries' lands had been apart of the Holy Roman Empire, both countries speak the same language, and both countries share some similar cultural aspects, it makes sense that this would be a topic often discussed.  Over time, there have been times when there was strong support in favor of uniting the two spheres while at other times there was strong support against doing so.  During the time in which The Sound of Music was set, many Austrians appear to be in favor of becoming apart of Germany.  According to Beller, this was in large part due to the failure of the Austrian government and economy to bounce back as strongly as Nazi Germany appeared to be doing prior to World War II.  Such "Austrian national ambivalence allowed the phenomenal economic success of HItler's Germany to have a powerful effect on the thinking, and loyalties, of ordinary Austrians." So, it appears that Rolfe was correct, at least to an extent, that many believed that Austria would be better off with the Anschluss.

I also found some other facts about the real von Trapp family that I just thought were interesting:
They declined a request to sing at Hitler's birthday party.
After coming to America, they settled in Vermont where they started a music camp called the Von Trapp Family Lodge.  This lodge is still open today although it now is a very beautiful resort.