A youth organisation for the far-right NSDAP, appearing much like the Boy Scouts, was originally created in 1922. The Hitler Youth was a direct extension of the Nazi Party, shaping the Nazis of tomorrow. It would become a part of the Nazi domination of all aspects of German life. Sounds intriguing? Let's find out what exactly the Hitler Youth was.
Hitler Youth Meaning
Hitlerjugend translates to the Hitler Youth, and it was a youth organisation in Germany run entirely by the Nazi Party from its inception in 1922 until 1945.
Hitler Youth Movement
The Hitler Youth was created in 1922 and initially, it was named the Jugenbund der Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (or simply the Jugenbund der NSDAP). The youth organisation began as a recruiting station for young aspiring future members of Hitler's paramilitary organisation the Sturmabteilung (SA). After the failed Beer Hall Putsch and the imprisonment of Adolf Hitler in 1923, the youth organisation disbanded and began operating secretly.
What was the Beer Hall Putsch?
The Beer Hall Putsch was a failed coup d'état instigated by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in November 1923. The putsch aimed to take over Munich (which was also why the coup is also known as the Munich Coup) and then take over Germany's central government.
As the putsch failed, Adolf Hitler attempted to flee but was arrested and put into Landsberg Prison where he authored the infamous 'Mein Kampf'.
Nevertheless, the youth organisation did not stay hidden for long. Hitler was released from prison in nine months instead of the five years he was sentenced to. After a few more name changes to the youth organisation, in 1926, the name Hitler-Jugend was adopted.
The youth organisation slowly began growing in the late 1920s but it began its new chapter in 1933, once Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. Essentially, as soon as Hitler became Chancellor, the Hitler Youth began expanding and becoming more of a Nazi preparatory school than just a youth organisation.
Fig. 1: A 13-year-old member of the Hitler Youth
Hitler Youth Membership
As soon as he turned 10 years of age, a German boy began his journey to becoming a Nazi. To qualify, the German boy would have to pass a "racial purity" test, which was an examination of his ancestry to prove he was sufficiently 'Aryan'.
Racial Purity and the Perfect Aryan
The Hitler Youth was a major propaganda piece for the Nazi party. The Hitler Youth aided to maintain the idea of the perfection of the Aryan race. This, in turn, encouraged the perception of a societal hierarchy based on race, placing the Aryans on the top ad everybody else on the bottom. It is quite interesting how something so seemingly mundane as a youth organisation fed into the broader concept of a racial hierarchy within the German public.
All members of the Hitler Youth were tested to determine their racial 'purity' and all members of the Hitler Youth were 'pure' Aryans. In order to be deemed a full-fledged Aryan, it was required that one's family tree was to be almost exclusively German (this included Austrians and ethnic German communities in Europe, such as those in Sudetenland or Romania).
If the boy passed this test, he would become a member of the Deutsches Jungvolk, a preparatory stage of the Hitler Youth. But as soon as he reached 13, the German boy was sent to the Hitler Youth where he would stay until the age of 18.
It was here that the boy would undergo intense Nazi indoctrination shaping him to become a member of the party when he turned 18. After this, the boy would be drafted into military service where he would serve for three years until he reached the age of 21. He could then choose to leave the armed forces or stay. He had completed his years in the Hitler Youth, only then was he granted this choice.
Fig. 2: The Hitler Youth
Was the Hitler Youth inspired by anyone?
Hitler was not the only dictator who sought to create the next generation of devoted party members. Benito Mussolini, Duce of Fascist Italy, was also a fervent supporter of youth organisations. His youth organisation, Gioventù Italiana del Littorio was extremely successful in Italy. Mussolini in fact, would go a step further and compare the success of his youth organisation to that of the classical Spartan agoge.
Agoge
A Spartan system of education in which all males took part from childhood. The children grew up in the agoge where they were trained in combat. The agoge was a necessary rite of passage for every Spartan man and no Spartan could be a citizen or marry without completing it.
As soon as Hitler became Chancellor and the Hitler Youth began expanding, they became more concerned with preparing young boys to become future soldiers in the German armed forces. But, to do this, the Hitler Youth needed as many boys to fulfil its goal and build a strong army. In 1936, the Nazi Party outlawed all other youth organisations in Germany (almost all of which were extremely small) and made the Hitler Youth mandatory not only for all boys but the girls as well.
Very soon, every boy between the ages of 10 and 17 was a member of the Hitler Youth and every girl from the ages of 10 to 18 became a member of the League of German Girls. The boys were classically trained to be good soldiers and adherents of the Nazi ideology, while the girls were taught to be good mothers and adhere to the "Kinder, Küche, Kirche" philosophy.
Fig. 3: The League of German Girls
"Kinder, Küche, Kirche"
Translates to "Children, Kitchen, Church" and signifies the three priorities of a German woman. This term was coined by Kaiser Wilhelm II and heavily used by Hitler and Nazi Propaganda. For the Nazis, having strong boys was not enough, having strong girls meant that they would someday become strong mothers who would give birth to strong children. Gender norms were strictly defined in 1930s Germany.
Hitler Youth Activities
The Hitler Youth was very concerned with a strong body. The Nazi Party began completely changing their school systems. No longer would German youth be concerned with academics as strongly as before, but now, their priority, even in schools, would be physical strength. Thus typical schooldays became more about physical training.
If physical training at school wasn't enough, after-school activities, and weekend camping trips frequently took place during the weekends and were organised by the Hitler Youth to promote camaraderie. This camaraderie would ultimately benefit the Nazi Party, as they would have a future, tightly-knit society that had been raised by the party.
Hitler Youth Purpose
The purpose of the Hitler Youth was really to create a strong German army with an abundance of manpower. This was evident towards the end of the Second World War.
From 1943 onwards, all boys who were 17 years of age or older were drafted into the military. Don't forget, as mentioned, boys only began formal military training from the age of 18 to 21, and you can imagine how ill-prepared a 17-year-old youth would be for war.
By 1944, Germany was losing a large number of soldiers and a vast amount of territory it had occupied just years ago. In a desperate attempt to replenish their ever-plunging number of soldiers, Germany began drafting boys from 16 years of age. In the end, these kids fought alongside the Volkssturm, a reserve militia made up of men aged 16 to 60 who were not part of any German military unit. Ultimately, child combatants, aged 16 and 17, were also tried by the Allies after the war ended.
Fig. 4: The Volkssturm march in Berlin
Hitler Youth - Key takeaways
- The Hitler Youth was created in 1922 and was initially called the Jugenbund der NSDAP.
- The Hitler Youth emerged as a dominant Nazi youth organisation along with the rise of Hitler.
- Eventually, the branches of the Hitler Youth were home to all 'Aryan' German boys and girls aged 10 to 18.
- After their service in the Hitler Youth, many boys eventually became party members of the Nazi Party and served in the armed forces.
- In the end, the main reason behind the Hitler Youth was to raise a large army based on a large number of German soldiers.
- The Hitler Youth was not able to supplement the losing German army and many kids aged 16 and 17 were sent into combat and many were either killed or captured.
References
- Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow (2005)
- Fig. 1: Hitler Youth aged 13 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hitler_Youth_aged_13_(35895605510).png#filehistory) by Cassowary Colorizations is licensed by CC-by-2.0
- Fig. 2: Hitler-Jugend (1933) (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hitler-Jugend_(1933).jpg) public domain, author is anonymous
- Fig. 3: BDM volksdeutsche (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BDM_volksdeutsche.jpg) public domain, author is anonymous
- Fig. 4: Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1971-033-15, Vorbeimarsch des Volkssturms an Goebbels, Berlin (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1971-033-15,_Vorbeimarsch_des_Volkssturms_an_Goebbels,_Berlin.jpg) by German Federal Archive licensed by CC-BY-SA 3.0
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