Charlotte Teuber-Weckersdorf
Charlotte M. Teuber-Weckersdorf (1 November 1923 – 16 February 1998) was one of Austria’s most important Girl Guides leaders and a university professor. Her father, Wilhelm Teuber-Weckersdorf, and his brother Emmerich were early Scouting pioneers in Austria. Wilhelm led Scouting in Austria before it was banned in 1938, helped rebuild it after the war, and also served as President of the Girl Guides in Salzburg. The family was Catholic-conservative and opposed Nazism; her father and uncle were arrested after the Anschluss. In 1938 Charlotte could not attend the Gymnasium because of her beliefs. During World War II she worked with the German Red Cross.
After the war she passed university entrance exams and studied Archaeology and Art History in Innsbruck, earning her degrees in 1956. She studied Political Science at Harvard, earning a master’s degree in 1960 and a PhD in 1973. She taught at colleges from 1960 to 1973 and later became a visiting professor at the University of Vienna (1982–1992), continuing to work with students in Vienna and with the United Nations.
Guiding drew Charlotte in part because of her family. In 1945 she helped revive Guiding in Salzburg and then across Austria. She attended the 1st World Youth Conference in London, meeting many Scout and Guide leaders. In 1946 she led the first Austrian Guiders’ training after the war in Vorarlberg, and in 1949 she organized a leaders’ training in Innsbruck. She was International Commissioner of the Austrian Girl Guides and served as Austrian Chief Guide from 1951 to 1957. She met Olave Baden-Powell at World Scout events in Salzburg. After the Hungarian Revolution in 1956, she worked with Austrian Rangers and Guiders in the Traiskirchen refugee camp.
Charlotte Teuber-Weckersdorf left a lasting impact on Guiding in Austria and on education. She passed away in 1998.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 10:14 (CET).