Hitler Youth encouraged comradeship and physical fitness, hiking and singing.
Facing History
Facing History
Facing History
The Youth League of the Nazi Party began in 1922, a year before Hitler & his Party marched on Berlin to overthrow the German federal government and create a unified Greater German Reich. But the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch Munich failed and Hitler was gaoled for high treason. The government provisionally banned all Nazi organisations, including the youth league, but the teens continued in secret. After the ban was lifted, the now official youth organisation became the Hitler Youth in July 1926.
As the Nazi Party was gaining popularity, the men wanted to increase their influence over Germany’s youth. When the Nazis formally came to power in Germany in 1933, there were many political, social and religious youth groups in existence, often wearing scouting uniforms. But the Hitler Youth remained the only group educating and training male youth in Nazi principles. By then Hitler Youth membership had increased to 2+ million (30% of teens 10-18)
In 1931, politician Baldur von Schirach became solely responsible for directing all youth activities in Germany (until 1940 when he became Vienna’s Nazi Party chief). His movement was made up of different sections for boys and girls. At 10, a boy was registered, investigated for racial purity and, if qualified, inducted. At 13 the youth became eligible for the Hitler Youth, living a life of dedication, fellowship and Nazi conformity, with minimal parental supervision. At 18 he became a member of the Nazi Party and served in the state labour service and armed forces. The Hitler Youth was the Showcase Of The Regime.
Two leagues appeared for girls: 1] Young Girls was for those aged 10-14 and 2] the League of German Girls trained those aged 14-18 for comradeship, domestic duties and motherhood. The girls partook in collective physical activities, rather than competitive individual games, to demonstrate the value of working together eg gymnastics.
In 1933, political youth groups were quickly incorporated or suppressed. Apolitical and religious youth groups did last well into the 1930s but then the dissolution of youth groups became part of a formal society-wide process.
By 1935 the Hitler Youth included 60% of Christian boys. Because racial purity was critical, Jewish German boys were not allowed to join. And by July 1936, it became a state agency that all young Aryan Germans were expected to join. This was not a problem for the boys who had mostly lived in poverty at home; now they had the chance to enjoy travel, camping, sports and marching. They loved it. The Nazis flattered these youth and paid them attention, a rare and wonderful experience for young teens.
Later the Nazi regime compelled young people to join and significantly increased membership. By 1937, membership in the Hitler Youth grew to 5.4 million; by 1940, 7.2 million.
They taught children to be both racially conscious and physically fit. Note the brisk military-style hikes, singing the numerous Nazi marching songs they had memorised. And as a symbol of the nation’s future, Hitler Youth were invited to Nazi Party rallies and marches with flags. Fittingly Leni Riefenstahl made a film Triumph of the Will, showing Hitler greeting Hitler Youth boys at the 1934 Nuremberg Rally.
Indoctrinating young people with Nazi ideology and imposing conformity was critical for the modelling of German society. So the Hitler Youth was modelled after its adult counterpart, the SA paramilitary. But how vigorously were The Hitler Youth lads taught Nazi ideology and policy? Very! By dominating the boys’ lives, the organisation demanded a significant time commitment: meetings and camps after school, leaving little time left for church and family events. Plus lectures, slogans, songs and constant anti-Semitic chants.
History Place
Boys practised military drills and learned to use weapons. They also laboured on farms and did competitive boxing. Many boys enjoyed the physical challenge, competition and camaraderie. But others found the constant focus on preparing for war alienating.
In March 1939 a new decree mandated all under 18s to join the Hitler Youth which was now the only legal youth movement in Germany; and punished those who disobeyed. By war's start, a generation of teens was ready to fight and to occupy foreign territory, conscripted into the civil defence and in the militia, the Home Guard. Or they used their knowledge to serve the German war effort in other ways.
In March 1939 a new decree mandated all under 18s to join the Hitler Youth which was now the only legal youth movement in Germany; and punished those who disobeyed. By war's start, a generation of teens was ready to fight and to occupy foreign territory, conscripted into the civil defence and in the militia, the Home Guard. Or they used their knowledge to serve the German war effort in other ways.
listening to a speech by Adolf Hitler, 1935.
Holocaust Museum
In 1943 the Waffen-SS formed a special division made up of Hitler Youth. This division consisted of older boys, first deployed to France and Belgium where morale was high among the young troops, especially when Himmler visited. The endless but reckless bravery of the boys shocked the British and Canadians who fought them.
When Germany was clearly losing the war, the Nazi regime faced manpower shortages and destroyed cities, creating even worse housing and scarce supplies. In raids, the regime used teens to operate anti-aircraft rifles. And teens helped displaced civilians with relief activities eg in soup kitchens.
With the May 1945 surrender, the Hitler Youth was outlawed. But by then millions of teens had spent their key years as members of Hitler Youth organisations, perhaps leaving an impact on C20th German society. An excellent read is The History Place.
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20 comments:
Thanks for a good read on the history of hilter youth. Interesting as it started out early in 1933
Fascinating, excellently written - and scary. Like many aspects of totalitarianism, it all starts as seeming so superficially reasonable, so innocent...and then... The scene in 'Cabaret' when the youth gets up and starts to sing 'Tomorrow Belongs To Me' - quite frightening. You wonder whether the same thing could happen today; but, of course, the indoctrination would be online, wouldn't it?
Poor girls, learning motherhood and domestic duties. Life in the movement was not very different from life at home.
Open anti Semitism in the twenties among youth groups. It may have taken more that a decade to come fruition but with the benefit of hindsight, the Holocaust was predictable yet the world saw what was happening in Germany as acceptable. We blame not the indoctrinated children.
As Mike above says, and I have in the past, that scene in Cabaret was chilling.
What Andrew said. All predictable, yet people choose to close their eyes and ears to it. Some of us know what is happening.
roentare
It really is an amazing story, thank you.
In 1922, the Munich-based Nazi Party established its official youth organisation Hitler-Jugend and its first meeting was called fairly quickly. Another youth group was established in 1922 as the Jungsturm Adolf Hitler, with a more alarming name. But whatever the organisers knew back in 1922, the parents and the boys just thought it was another fun filled scouting type movement.
Mike
there is totalitarianism and then there is totalitarianism. I think the young teens in particular had a wonderful time at first with clean uniforms, fun music, fun marching, close friendships, learning camping skills and freedom from close parental supervision. Only as the political and religious controls became VERY rigorous and the membership became strictly limited did the parents worry about what all the military training meant.
Could it happen today? We have all heard about similar controls being placed on young teens' thinking and behaviour in scary cults. Those children grow up to endure terrible lives :(
Deb
That photo of the League of German Girls taking the toddlers on walks while their mothers worked is telling, isn't it. However the young girls must have enjoyed themselves, at least to the extent that they still wanted to go to League of German Girls' activities each week.
Andrew
I always wondered why families didn't leave Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary etc until the last moment. My very educated brother-in-law didn't flee Germany until 1939 and was very very fortunate to survive. The argument was often that their fathers had served Germany with honour during WW1 and would be protected as a consequence.
Young children are never to blame!
Meanqueen
Good comment. I think the people who stand up to totalitarianism understand the very real risk they run personally and the risk to their families. Just think of the Iranian woman was murdered by the morality police for not wearing her hijab tightly enough. To stand up for democracy for women in Iran, and to end oppression, Iranian women have been burning them their hijabs and have been paying a great price.
Boa noite minha querida amiga. Infelizmente no Brasil enfrentamos momentos de totalitarismo.
Luiz
I understand perfectly. I would say that is true in an increasing number of nations across the world.
Hels, A tragic story of the young Iranian woman who was murdered. I saw the video of the college girls removing their hijabs when a speaker came to the school. They chased him away. I hope this is a turning point, but I fear a lot more atrocities are to come. My mother left Germany just after the war to come to the UK. She told me stories of her life and what they went through. I look at your pictures and it saddens me to think my grandparents were caught up in all that. I never got to meet them. We can't go back to that.
Chilling! However, I don't think I agree that it was predictable. Hindsight offers clarity of vision that isn't necessarily there at at the earlier time. I believe that the Holocaust took the modern world to a place that was inconceivable at the time. I still find it hard to take in the enormity and extremity of it.
Meanqueen Helen also believes that those Iranian students are in great danger in a totalitarian society where females are at the greatest risk. Your mother must have been a very resourceful and lucky young woman.
bazza Helen agrees that when the Youth League of the Nazi Party began in 1922, parents thought it was a wonderful idea for their children. Even after the official youth organisation became the Hitler Youth in the late 1920s, the children looked clean, well dressed and learning great skills. For those families, there was zero indication of the horrors to come.
There is a wonderful documentary series called Hitler's Children which I saw a few years ago . It had about 5 episodes and may be available on U tube . I found it deeply moving .The sad realization of being used and duped and the terrible guilt at what they were groomed to believe comes through .
My father always told me that the most important thing I could do in life was to think for myself .Its a sentiment which is very very applicable to today when we are again in the thrall of propaganda on social media like never before . Since the rise of Trump and the destruction of the Republican Party and their capacity to follow blindly with no heed to the demonstrable lying that is going on , I have come to see that what happened in Germany can happen anywhere . Our social fabric and political system is fragile . We need to treasure it and recognize danger when it comes dressed in a slick suit and spouts populist nonsense .
Meanqueen I also have that back ground , My dad went through this . It had a devastating effect on him and his siblings .
mem
It can happen anywhere, YES! Let's just look at Europe. Giorgia Meloni is set to become Italy's P.M after her party, The Brothers of Italy, a far-right group with Neo-fascist roots, got a majority. And in Sweden earlier this month, a far-right group called the Sweden Democrats received the second highest number of votes in the election. It is widely expected that the extreme right will be influential in setting Sweden's political agenda (NPR).
Meloni may choose to invest in her party’s political allies and extreme right partners in Europe, such as the governments of Poland and Hungary. FdI and Poland’s Law and Justice party belong to the same political groups in the European Parliament, and both have already voted against downgrading Hungary to an electoral autocracy. All these parties share anti-immigration and ultra-conservative values.
Within the EU, Italy could support Poland and Hungary on curbing Brussels’s attempts to defend the rule of law. Defending the “interests of Italians” may not square with supporting the interests of Hungary's Orbán. Poland will be going to the polls in 2023, and Hungary is increasingly finding itself ever more isolated in the EU (Carnegie).
mem and Meanqueen
I am with you both! My in laws were also both resourceful and lucky. Father in law lost his parents, sibling, nieces and nephews, and was delighted to sit in a DP camp until visas to Australia arrived in 1951.
My mother in law lost her parents, two of her siblings and all but one nephew. She wanted to stay in Europe until she found any family survivors after the Holocaust.
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