Sometimes officials tried to calm down the raging youth with prohibitive measures. Thus, in January 1930, the city mayor of Hannover and former Minister of War Gustav Noske (Social Democrat) forbade schoolchildren from joining the Hitler Youth. His example was followed in other lands of the country. However, it was impossible to cope with the Hitler Youth with such measures. The Nazis used the reputation of people's fighters persecuted by the authorities to promote propaganda and attract new members to the youth organization. The brown activists who were punished presented themselves as “victims” who suffered for the truth. As soon as the authorities banned any Hitler Youth cell, it was revived under a different name, for example, “Friends of Nature” or “Young People’s Philatelists.” Fantasy knew no bounds. In Kiel, for example, a group of butcher shop apprentices marched through the streets in their blood-stained aprons when the authorities banned the wearing of the Hitler Youth uniform. “The enemies trembled at the appearance of this group. They knew that everyone had a huge knife under their apron,” recalled one of the eyewitnesses
The Hitler Youth took part in the election campaign everywhere. They distributed leaflets and brochures, pasted up posters and wrote slogans on the walls. Many parents were worried about the health of their children, since their participation in campaign work on the street was unsafe. From 1931 to the end of January 1933, more than 20 members of the Hitler Youth were killed in clashes while performing “official duty in the name of the Fuhrer” (it should be noted here that young men from pro-communist youth associations also died).
Members of the Hitler Youth. 1933
The name of the Hitler Youth from Berlin, who fell at the hands of the “red youth” in the Moabit area, quickly became known - Herbert Norkus. At one time, his widowed father as a result economic crisis was forced to sell a small grocery store. Soon he joined the NSDAP. On the morning of January 24, 1932, fifteen-year-old Herbert and his comrades were handing out leaflets to passersby. They were attacked by a group of the same teenagers from a communist organization. Members of the Hitler Youth started to run, but the pursuers caught up with Norkus and stabbed him several times. The young man died from loss of blood. The killers fled.
The Nazis turned the funeral ceremony at the Plötzensee cemetery into a propaganda event. Pastor Wenzl, who served at the funeral, said in his farewell speech that “Herbert Norkus is an example for all German youth.” The then Nazi Gauleiter of Berlin, Joseph Goebbels, called on those gathered for vengeance:
“No one will take away from us the hope that the day of revenge will come. And then those who talk about humanity and love for one’s neighbor, but killed our comrade without trial, will know the strength of the new Germany. Then they will beg for mercy. It’s too late. The new Germany demands redemption."
Funeral of a Hitler Youth member
During the NSDAP congresses, Hitler Youth Day was held. During this day, party rallies were held at Frankenstadion, which is located on the territory of the NSDAP congresses.
Ernst Röhm walks around the ranks of Hitler Youth during a parade in Dortmund 07/08/1933
The leadership of the Hitler Youth tried by any means to attract young people. Solemn processions, propaganda marches and parades, war games, sports competitions, hiking trips, youth rallies, and international meetings with members of fascist youth associations in Italy and other countries were organized. Living together made the Hitler Youth very attractive to young people. Regular pilgrimages were held to Braunau am Inn, Hitler's birthplace. Any young man could find something interesting for himself in the activities of the Hitler Youth: art or folk crafts, aircraft modeling, journalism, music, sports, etc.
Members of the Hitler Youth learn to navigate the terrain. 1936
In addition to paramilitary actions, evenings were organized on Sundays, where small groups of the Hitler Youth gathered to develop plans for further actions and listen to propaganda radio broadcasts. On the other hand, the young man, who was not a member of the Hitler Youth, seemed to separate himself from his comrades who were.
A poster promoting joining the Hitler Youth (the inscription at the bottom is “All ten-year-olds are in the Hitler Youth”, at the top is “Youth Serve the Fuhrer”)
Participation in the Hitler Youth began at the age of 10. Every year on March 15th, every boy who had reached the age of ten was required to register at the Imperial Youth Headquarters. After carefully studying the information about the child and his family, where Special attention was given to him " racial purity", he was considered "free from shame". To be accepted, it was necessary to pass the so-called "Boy Test" and a medical examination. This was followed by a solemn ceremony of admission to the younger age group - Jungfolk.
Member of the Hitler Youth. 09.1934
The ceremony was held on the Fuhrer's birthday (April 20), in the presence of high party leadership. The transition to the next age group also took place with solemnity and pomp.
In the Hitler Youth, the most important attention was paid to such topics as racial theory, population policy, German history and political regional studies. In the foreground were the “Mastering Race” and policy towards the Jews, in history - the biography of Hitler, the history of the NSDAP, political regional studies, and the greatest attention was paid to the countries of fascism.
Hitler Youth Member ID
Emblem of the Hitler Youth organization
Flag of the Hitler Youth
But much more important than mental education was physical education. Competitions were the basis of sports development. Since 1935, Reich sports competitions began to be held annually. Competitions were held in athletics, hand-to-hand combat and team sports.
1936 Hitler Youth football team
Since 1937, shooting from firearms was introduced.
Eleven-year-old members of the Hitler Youth practice rifle shooting
Every hour of the Hitler Youth was busy to the limit, and the youth barely had time for their families. Most parents did not object to this routine.
Member of the Hitler Youth with a drum. 1936
A Hitler Youth accordionist performs in front of an audience
Member of the Hitler Youth on probation in the Kriegsmarine
On December 1, 1936, with the adoption of the “Hitler Youth Law” (Gesetz über die Hitler-Jugend), and then on March 25, 1939, with the adoption of the “Youth Service Duty” (Jugenddienstpflicht), previously formally voluntary participation in motion has become mandatory. With the assumption of office by the head of the organization, Baldur von Schirach, the Hitler Youth became part of the NSDAP.
Application for joining the Hitler Youth 1938
Robert Ley, Hitler Youth leader Baldur von Schirach and Propaganda Ministry Secretary Karl Hanke inspect a Hitler Youth detachment
Robert Ley, Franz Xavier Schwarz and Baldur von Schirach test the knowledge of student members of the Hitler Youth
After Baldur von Schirach, this post was taken by A. Axman. The organization was dissolved after the defeat of the Third Reich.
Hitler Youth rally 02/13/1939 at the Berlin Sports Palace. From right to left: Leader of the national women's organization Gertrud Scholz-Klink, Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler, Rudolf Hess, youth leader and Gauleiter of Vienna Baldur von Schirach, regional leader of the Hitler Youth Arthur Axmann, Colonel Rudolf von Alvensleben, Himmler's adjutant.
Hitler, giving a speech in Reichenberg (a city in the Czech Sudetenland annexed to Germany, now Liberec) at the beginning of 1938, spoke as follows about the fate of German youth:
These young people - they learn nothing other than to think in German, act in German. And when these boys and girls come to our organizations at the age of ten and often only there for the first time receive and feel Fresh air, after four years they go from the Jungvolk to the Hitler Youth, where we leave them for another four years, and then we give them not to the hands of their old parents and school teachers, but we immediately accept them into the party or the Workers' Front, into the SA or SS, into the NSKK, etc. And if they stay there for one and a half or two years and do not become complete National Socialists, then they will be called up for "Labor Conscription" and will grind for six to seven months with the help of some symbol - a German shovel. And what remains in six or seven months of class consciousness or class arrogance will be taken over by the Wehrmacht in the next two years. And when they return in two, or three, or four years, we will immediately take them into the SA, SS, etc., so that they will under no circumstances return to their old ways. And they will never be free again - for the rest of their lives.
Hitler Youth. 1938
Hitler Youth camp in the mountains 08/22/1938.
Miscellaneous
The organization was dissolved after the defeat of the Third Reich.
A Hitler Youth delegation visited Japan in August-September 1938
The Hitler Youth delegation arrived in Yokohama on the passenger ship Gneisenau on August 16, 1938. As they arrived, they shouted “Dai Nippon banzai” (大日本万歳! Long live Great Japan!)
Crowds of Japanese greet the Hitler Youth delegation at a train station in Tokyo
A delegation of the Hitler Youth marches along one of the streets of Tokyo
Japanese girls greet the Germans
Gala dinner at the German Embassy on the first day of the Hitler Youth delegation's stay in Japan, August 16, 1938
Members of the Hitler Youth meet with Japanese leaders on September 5, 1938
The Hitler Youth delegation at Edo Castle during a symbolic meeting ceremony with Emperor Hirohito
A Hitler Youth delegation visiting Meiji Shrine in September 1938
A Shinto priest leading a Hitler Youth delegation visits Yasukuni
Group photo of members of the Hitler Youth delegation and Japanese officers during a visit to Japan
Japanese women in the Hitler Youth
Fragments of events with the participation of the German delegation
Commemorative badges
Adolf Hitler was confident that the existence of the “thousand-year Reich” could only be ensured through the appropriate education of the younger generation. To achieve this goal, the Hitler Youth was created. An organization that every German child who reached the required age had to join.
"You are no longer your own"
The development of the organization proceeded in conjunction with the strengthening of the party’s influence; already from 1926, members of the movement everywhere participated in the NSDAP election campaigns: they distributed leaflets, put up posters, and wrote slogans. Actually, in the years Weimar Republic, there were repeated attempts to limit the activities of the Hitler Youth. Thus, in 1930, the authorities of Hanover established a ban on schoolchildren joining the organization; similar measures were taken in other federal states, however, all of them were unsuccessful. As soon as the authorities banned any Hitler Youth cell, it was revived under a different name, for example, “Friends of Nature.” With the Nazis coming to power in 1933, the organization thoroughly strengthened its position, becoming a full part of the Nazi Party. The leader of the Hitler Youth was Baldur von Schirach, a loyal follower of Hitler who promised to unite all German youth.
United party - united youth
Just as the NSDAP became the only party in Germany, the Hitler Youth was to become the only organization of its kind. Since 1933, the party leadership has been trying to concentrate all work with German youth on its organization. The total strength of the Hitler Youth in 1934 was about three million people. In 1936, the Hitler Youth Law was issued, which established compulsory membership of almost all German children in the organization.
Youth leading youth
The Hitler Youth was organized along the lines of a real military order. Junior group: boys from 10 to 14 years old - “German Youth”; from 14 to 18 years old - the Hitler Youth itself. Women's organization within the Hitler Youth: girls aged 10 to 14 years - "Union of Girls"; from 14 to 18 years old - “Union German girls" In fact, participation in the organization began already in the very early age. Every year, on March 15, every boy who had reached the age of ten was required to register at the Imperial Youth Headquarters, where information about the child and his family was studied. Particular attention was paid to his “racial purity.” After medical examinations and physical tests, the candidate could be accepted into the organization.
Frontline cadres of the regime
After the adoption of the law “On the Hitler Youth”, its members automatically became future cadres of party organizations and the army. The Hitler Youth focused on topics such as racial theory, German history, and political studies. However, the most important process was physical training. All kinds of competitions were the basis for sports development. Since 1935, sports competitions began to be held annually. Children competed in athletics, hand-to-hand combat and team sports. Since 1937, shooting from firearms was introduced. The students themselves always dreamed of fulfilling their “duty to their homeland.” Each of them wanted to serve the Reich and the Fuhrer on the battlefields. Considering that many teachers of the Hitler Youth educational institutions were military officers, the desire to “pay back their debt” increased significantly.
The collapse of German hopes
Young people who “think and act like Germans” faced a harsh reality towards the end of the war. The regime could rely on the willingness of people to make sacrifices, since dying for the Fuhrer was considered an honor. By 1944, the party leadership actively used this “value” by conscripting members of the Hitler Youth into the troops. By the end of the war, sixteen-year-old soldiers appeared in the army. Moreover, in the last weeks of the war, even twelve-year-old volunteers came to the army with the desire to “save Germany.”
“We were born to die for Germany,” read one of the typical slogans of the Hitler Youth. But the front-line experience of the “volunteers” was zero, and most front-line soldiers did not even consider them to be their “brothers in arms.” Many of their organization members died immediately in the first battle.
Everything new is well forgotten old. Men's fashion loves to turn to the classics and today's man's image is proof of this. The modern men's Hitler Youth hairstyle is a stylish interpretation of the haircut of the 30s. Despite such a provocative name and indirect reference to Adolf Hitler, the hairstyle is very popular. Scandalous conversations and disputes about the Hitler Youth do not subside, but the fact that she is incredibly beautiful and fashionable remains an unconditional fact.
What is she like? Why is there so much talk around her? Let's study all its features in detail in the article.
Hitler Youth - haircut like Hitler?
Not certainly in that way. The historical origins of the Hitler Youth hairstyle begin in the 1930s. The first formation occurred during the National Socialist rule of Adolf Hitler. Young men from the Hitler Youth military detachment, which operated in Nazi Germany in the period 1926-1945, began to cut their hair in this manner. Neatly styled hair emphasized severity, restraint and was a clear manifestation of the Fuhrer’s cult of discipline. Later, all soldiers and officers began to decorate their heads in the same manner.
The second peak in hairstyle fashion occurred in the 80s of the last century. Stylists tried to modify the image of the Hitler Youth and move away from the provocative name. Now the haircut was associated with rich people, whose image radiated well-groomedness and success in society. A neat parting with combed-back hair became the hallmark of that era.
Image and style of the Hitler Youth
A new modern round of popularity began in 2013. Stylists began to actively use trends that were the calling card of soldiers and officers. Nowadays in salons everyone often likes to use a simple slang name - “like a Fritz.”
The hitlerjugend hairstyle complements the masculine look and goes with any style. It will look equally fashionable with a tie suit or a leather biker jacket. This style is suitable for both business and respectable men, as well as creative youth guys with tattoos. 
The unusual effect is achieved thanks to the texture of shaved temples and a long top, neatly smoothed back. Great addition there is a neat parting on the side, which emphasizes the graceful transition and contrasts between the hair.
The effect of the hairstyle guarantees the creation of a strictly open-faced image, where modification occurs due to the absence of thick strands. Very often, the haircut is complemented by smooth styling with the effect of “wet” hair. Everything is neat, strict and restrained. And that's the beauty of it.
Who suits the Hitler Youth hairstyle?
The versatility of the haircut lies in the fact that it looks very stylish and bright on any man. Regardless of clothing and image, a neat hairstyle with shaved temples and parted hair visually lengthens the face.
The effect of the haircut is lost, only in case of too round and pronounced cheeks. It is not suitable for those who have long curly hair. This contradicts the image of severe severity with shaved temples and slicked hair. Every day after the haircut, the effect will be noticeably lost.
Men and boys with thin faces and pronounced cheekbones look best in this style. The Hitler Youth fully emphasizes the beauty that was in the understanding of Europe in the 30s.
How to explain to a hairdresser
This is where the tricky part begins. “Hitler Youth” is a very provocative name, which on a subconscious level causes irritation and a lot of criticism. In 2014, there was a scandal about this in Moscow. Clients, seeing such a name in the catalog, considered it unacceptable and raised it in the media big wave disputes. Opinions were divided, but no significant changes occurred. The hairstyle only attracted more attention and acquired alternative names, making communication between the hairdresser and the salon visitor more accessible. But how should you properly explain your desires?
- You can tell the hairdresser the original name. If he is a professional and follows modern trends– he will understand the client’s requirement.
- The name “Fritz haircut” has become well established among the people. Many stylists perform this hairstyle in accordance with all the rules and established trends. Agree, a rather simple and understandable association?
- As an alternative version, the name "Preppy" can be used. It appeared in America in the 1980s and fully reflects the standards of the Hitler Youth. The renaming was done only with the aim of disowning the German troops.
- The name Undercut Prof has taken root among professional stylists. The two haircuts Undercut and Hitlerjugend are similar to each other, but the latter requires more skill and time from the hairdresser.
What are the differences between the Hitler Youth and the Undercat?
These two haircuts are easy to confuse, but despite all their similarities, they have a number of key differences. If you look at the photo of Hitler Yunegr and compare it with underkat, you will notice characteristic features:
- At the border of short and long hair there is a smooth transition with a “visor”
- When shaving the temples and back of the head with a machine, there is no sharp difference between the lengths. Hair gradually increases in size from the neck to the crown.
- The haircut requires constant styling using wax, gel or varnish.
If Undercut welcomes experiments with shapes, partings and styling, then the hairstyles of the Third Reich require complete accuracy and rigor. Only asymmetrical parting and hair styling to the side or back are allowed.
How to do a Hitler Youth hairstyle? Video of a professional stylist working
The modern technique of a hairdresser-stylist will consist of 4 main stages. On each of them, the length of the hair is adjusted and a complete image is created. It is important to achieve a smooth combination of top length and smooth hair texture.
- Stage 1. Almost the entire length of hair in the temporal area is removed under the machine. When working, use a nozzle with a height of no more than 1-2 mm. After this, the occipital region is treated using the same technology. Wherein characteristic feature is that when removing the length, the transition from the temple to the back of the head should be smooth. The texture is maintained throughout the entire area, highlighting the neatness of the look. To achieve this effect, professionals use a regular comb and cut off excess hair.
- Stage 2. The hair is pulled forward with a comb from the top of the head. A border is drawn along the eyebrow line and a triangular bang is formed with scissors. However, it should be shorter in length than the hair on the top of the head. This is done so that the strands do not fall into the eyes.
- Stage 3. The hair on top is cut to the same length. Ideally they should be more than 10 mm. A proper Hitler Youth should have a clear contrast between short and long hair. After this, the hairdresser puts the long strands together with bangs in a neat parting or combs them completely back. There are no clear rules on which side you should lay your hair on. Everyone interprets according to their own taste and style. The most important thing is to achieve smooth and natural hair at the top. The ends should not be glued together, but on the contrary, emphasize the entire texture and smoothly move to the short temples.
- Stage 4. At the end of the haircut, mandatory styling is done. Gel or wax is used for fixation. They add a harmonious “wet” effect and create a very natural and well-groomed look. A fashionable short Hitler haircut does not welcome dishevelment. Each hair must be strictly in its place.
Styling the Hitler Youth at home
Many people ask the question: “How to cut your hair with a clipper yourself at home?” Is it possible to get a high-quality “Fritz” hairstyle without going to the salon? The answer is yes. If you have a machine with short attachments on hand, then shaving your temples and the back of your head will not be difficult. The only difficulty will be creating a smooth transition to the main long hair. It is not possible to achieve such an effect on your own. But at the same time common features and the form is still preserved. Using a comb, a neat parting is made on the side and the hair is fixed with gel.
Which celebrities wear the Hitler Youth?
A strong argument in favor of the recognition and popularity of this haircut was modern styles Hollywood stars. The first to reveal the elegance and style of the Hitler Youth to a large audience was Brad Pitt. His image of an officer in the film Fury highlighted the beauty of his hairstyle and encouraged young boys and men to make bold changes in style.
Before him, football players David Beckham and Sergio Ramos were regular adherents of this fashion.
Another supporter is Adam Levine, lead singer of Maroon 5. His model image and manner of dressing are created for such a haircut. And he uses it regularly.
As you can see, the stars are not embarrassed by the names, but use their full potential to emphasize the excellence of their style.
" Violence against cinema owners and audiences led to the film being withdrawn from distribution in many regions of Germany. 
Sometimes officials tried to calm down the raging youth with prohibitive measures. Thus, in January 1930, the city mayor of Hannover and former Minister of War Gustav Noske (Social Democrat) forbade schoolchildren from joining the Hitler Youth. His example was followed in other lands of the country. However, it was impossible to cope with the Hitler Youth with such measures. The Nazis used the reputation of people's fighters persecuted by the authorities to promote propaganda and attract new members to the youth organization. The brown activists who were punished presented themselves as “victims” who suffered for the truth. As soon as the authorities banned any Hitler Youth cell, it was revived under a different name, for example, “Friends of Nature” or “Young People’s Philatelists.” Fantasy knew no bounds. In Kiel, for example, a group of butcher shop apprentices marched through the streets in their blood-stained aprons when the authorities banned the wearing of Hitler Youth uniforms. “The enemies trembled at the appearance of this group. They knew that everyone had a huge knife under their apron,” recalled one of the eyewitnesses.
The Hitler Youth took part in the election campaign everywhere. They distributed leaflets and brochures, put up posters and wrote slogans on the walls. Many parents were worried about the health of their children, since their participation in campaign work on the street was unsafe. From 1931 to the end of January 1933, more than 20 members of the Hitler Youth were killed in clashes while performing “official duty in the name of the Fuhrer” (it should be noted here that young men from pro-communist youth associations also died). 
The name of the Hitler Youth from Berlin, who fell at the hands of the “red youth” in the Moabit area, quickly became known - Herbert Norkus. At one time, his widowed father, as a result of the economic crisis, was forced to sell a small grocery store. Soon he joined the NSDAP. On the morning of January 24, 1932, fifteen-year-old Herbert and his comrades were handing out leaflets to passersby. They were attacked by a group of the same teenagers from a communist organization. Members of the Hitler Youth started to run, but the pursuers caught up with Norkus and stabbed him several times. The young man died from loss of blood. The killers fled.
The Nazis turned the funeral ceremony at the Plötzensee cemetery into a propaganda event. Pastor Wenzl, who served at the funeral, stated in his farewell speech that “Herbert Norkus is an example for all German youth”. The then Nazi Gauleiter of Berlin, Joseph Goebbels, called on those gathered for vengeance:
After Baldur von Schirach, this post was taken by A. Axman. The organization was dissolved after the defeat of the Third Reich.
Structure and operating principles of the organization
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Organized along military lines and on the principle of “Youth leading Youth,” the organization covered German youth between the ages of 10 and 18 and was divided by age category. Junior group: boys from 10 to 14 years old - “Deutsches Jungvolk” (“German Youth”); from 14 to 18 years old - actually Hitler Youth. Women's organization consisting of Hitler Youth: girls aged 10 to 14 years - “Jungmedelbund” (“Union of Girls”); from 14 to 18 years old - “Bund Deutscher Medel” (“Union of German Girls”).
The Hitler Youth was led by the Reich Youth Fuhrer ( reichsjugendführer) (or Reichsfuehrer ( reichsführer)), appointed chairman of the NSDAP.
Territories
Until 1932 - regions ( gau), led by Hauführers ( gauführer), territorially corresponded to provinces, lands, groups from the provinces and small lands, along the party line - Gau NSDAP.
Led by Gebitsführers ( gebietsführer). Each territory consisted of 20 banns.
Banna
Until 1929 - from districts ( bezirk) led by the Bezirksführers ( bezirksführer), territorially corresponded to urban areas or non-district cities with adjacent territories.
Led by the Bannfuehrers ( bannführer). Each bann consisted of 4-6 strains.
Strains
Until 1938 - Unterbann ( unterbann), until 1929 - there was no similar link. Geographically they corresponded to urban districts, non-district cities, districts or small lands, along the party line - to NSDAP districts.
Led by Strainführers ( stammführer). Each strain consisted of 3-5 squads.
Squads
Geographically they corresponded to amts, earlier - to districts.
Led by Gefoglschatsführer ( gefoglschaftsführer). Each squad consisted of 4 balls.
Balls
Geographically they corresponded to cities, communities and districts, along the party line - to local groups of the NSDAP, and previously they corresponded territorially to amtams.
Led by Scharführers ( scharführer). Each of the balls consisted of 4 partnerships ( kameradschaft).
Partnerships
Geographically they corresponded to villages, streets, groups of apartment buildings, along party lines - NSDAP blocs, earlier territorially - to cities and communities, along party lines - to local NSDAP groups.
Led by the Kammerschaftsführer ( kameradschaftsführer). Each of the partnerships consisted of 10 members.
Activity
The leadership of the Hitler Youth tried to attract young people by any means. Solemn processions, propaganda marches and parades, war games, sports competitions, hiking trips, youth rallies, and international meetings with members of fascist youth associations in Italy and other countries were organized. Living together made the Hitler Youth very attractive to young people. Regular pilgrimages were held to Braunau am Inn, Hitler's birthplace. Any young man could find something interesting for himself in the activities of the Hitler Youth: art or folk crafts, aircraft modeling, journalism, music, sports, etc. In addition to paramilitary activities, evenings were organized on Sundays, where small groups of the Hitler Youth gathered to work out plans for further action, listen to propaganda radio broadcasts. On the other hand, the young man, who was not a member of the Hitler Youth, seemed to separate himself from his comrades who were.
Participation in the Hitler Youth began at the age of 10. Every year on March 15th, every boy who had reached the age of ten was required to register at the Imperial Youth Headquarters. After a thorough examination of the child and his family, with special attention paid to his "racial purity", he was considered "free from shame." To be accepted, it was necessary to pass the so-called "Boy Test" and a medical examination. This was followed by a solemn ceremony of admission to the younger age group - Jungfolk. The ceremony was held on the Fuhrer's birthday (April 20), in the presence of high party leadership. The transition to the next age group also took place with solemnity and pomp.
In the Hitler Youth, the most important attention was paid to such topics as racial theory, population policy, German history and political regional studies. In the foreground were the “Maintain Race” and politics in relation to other races, in history - the biography of Hitler, the history of the NSDAP, political regional studies, with the greatest attention paid to the countries of fascism. But much more important than mental education was physical education. Competitions were the basis of sports development. Since 1935, Reich sports competitions began to be held annually. Competitions were held in athletics, hand-to-hand combat and team sports. Since 1937, shooting from firearms was introduced.
With the outbreak of World War II, members of the Hitler Youth were collecting blankets and clothes for soldiers and sending parcels to the front.
Every hour of the Hitler Youth was busy to the limit, and the youth barely had time for their families. Most parents did not object to this routine.
Hitler on the Hitler Youth
Hitler, giving a speech in Reichenberg (a city in the Czech Sudetenland annexed to Germany, now Liberec) at the beginning of 1938, spoke about the fate of German youth as follows:
These young people - they learn nothing other than to think in German, act in German. And when these boys and girls come to our organizations at the age of ten and often only there for the first time receive and feel fresh air, after four years they end up from the Jungvolk in the Hitler Youth, where we leave them for another four years, and then we send them to other hands of old parents and school teachers, but we are immediately accepted into the party or the Workers' Front, into the SA or SS, into the NSKK, etc. And if they stay there for one and a half or two years and do not become complete National Socialists, then they will be drafted into “Labor service” and will be polished for six to seven months with the help of some symbol - a German shovel. And what remains in six or seven months of class consciousness or class arrogance will be taken over by the Wehrmacht in the next two years. And when they return in two, or three, or four years, we will immediately take them into the SA, SS, etc., so that they will under no circumstances return to their old ways. And they will never be free again - for the rest of their lives...
School in Nazi Germany
Preschoolers were brought up in kindergartens, and already there they began to be raised in the National Socialist spirit. The school was divided into three parts. At first, all children attended public school for four years. Then you could choose: either study for another four years in a public school, or six years in a secondary school, or eight in a complete secondary school. After some time, a higher level of public school was introduced, in which especially gifted public school students could study. In addition, elite schools, national-political educational institutions and the NSD secondary school were created. These schools could be attended already in the third or fourth year of study, but they were paid and, in addition, to study in them, membership in the Hitler Youth was required. Already at the first lesson in their lives, children received primers that prepared them for joining the Jungfolk and gave them an idea of racial theory. An example of racial education is, for example, the following episode: In a math lesson, the teacher asks: “What is 2 + 3”? They answer him: “Six.” Then the teacher says in response: “This is wrong, only Jews think so, the Germans have 2 + 3 = 5.”
Indoctrination
Music
The leadership of the NSDAP viewed music as an important means of ideological influence on youth. In particular, in the Hitler Youth cells, group singing of songs with ideological content was encouraged. Internal instructions for the organization’s leaders called group singing “the strongest means of strengthening the collective spirit.”
In popular culture
- In 1933, director Hans Steinhoff made the film Quex of the Hitler Youth. An irreconcilable conflict between a communist father and a son who dreams of joining the Hitler Youth.
- In 1993, the film “Swing kids” was released. Students Peter, Thomas and Arvid are crazy about swing music. And this a big problem, after all, the heroes live in Hamburg in 1939, swing is banned by Hitler as an American ideological infection, so their hobby can bring them big trouble: they can be expelled from the Hitler Youth and from the institute. Alas, the guys are too young to appreciate the full risk of playing rebels: during the day they are members of the Hitler Youth, in the evening they selflessly swing dance and talk about the Fuhrer with contempt. The game comes to an end when the Gestapo seizes Father Peter for his sympathy for the Jews, and the heroes themselves come to the attention of an SS officer. The time of challenge has come for jazz lovers - as well as for the whole world, due to the outbreak of World War II.
see also
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Notes
Literature
- Kormilitsyn S. V. III Reich. Hitler Jugend. Publishing House "Neva", St. Petersburg, 2004
- Kormilitsyn S. V. Youth policy Third Reich, 1933-1941 (dissertation for candidate of historical sciences: 07.00.03. - St. Petersburg, 2000. - 188 pp.: ill. RSL OD, 61 01-7/595-9)
- O. G. Shagalova. State policy of the Third Reich in the field of upbringing and education of German youth (candidate of historical sciences dissertation: 07.00.03: Tyumen, 2005 177 pp. RSL OD, 61:05-7/572),
- G. Knopp. “Children” of Hitler - M.: Olma-Press, 2004-288 p. ISBN 5-224-04809-5
Links
- (über 400 Bilder). Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe(Eine Bilddatenbank zur polnischen Geschichte). Hitler Youth in occupied Poland (1939-1944).
Excerpt characterizing the Hitler Youth
When Pierre, having run around courtyards and alleys, came back with his burden to Gruzinsky’s garden, on the corner of Povarskaya, at first he did not recognize the place from which he had gone to fetch the child: it was so cluttered with people and belongings pulled out of houses. In addition to Russian families with their goods, fleeing here from the fire, there were also several French soldiers in various attire. Pierre did not pay attention to them. He was in a hurry to find the official’s family in order to give his daughter to his mother and go again to save someone else. It seemed to Pierre that he had a lot more to do and quickly. Inflamed from the heat and running around, Pierre at that moment felt even more strongly than before that feeling of youth, revival and determination that overwhelmed him as he ran to save the child. The girl now became quiet and, holding Pierre’s caftan with her hands, sat on his hand and, like a wild animal, looked around her. Pierre occasionally glanced at her and smiled slightly. It seemed to him that he saw something touchingly innocent and angelic in this frightened and painful face.
On same place neither the official nor his wife were there anymore. Pierre walked quickly among the people, looking at the different faces that came his way. Involuntarily he noticed a Georgian or Armenian family, consisting of a handsome, very old man with an oriental face, dressed in a new covered sheepskin coat and new boots, an old woman of the same type and a young woman. This very young woman seemed to Pierre the perfection of oriental beauty, with her sharp, arched black eyebrows and a long, unusually tenderly ruddy and beautiful face without any expression. Among the scattered belongings, in the crowd in the square, she, in her rich satin cloak and a bright purple scarf covering her head, resembled a delicate greenhouse plant thrown out into the snow. She sat on a bundle somewhat behind the old woman and motionlessly looked at the ground with her large black elongated eyes with long eyelashes. Apparently, she knew her beauty and was afraid for it. This face struck Pierre, and in his haste, walking along the fence, he looked back at her several times. Having reached the fence and still not finding those he needed, Pierre stopped, looking around.
The figure of Pierre with a child in his arms was now even more remarkable than before, and several Russian men and women gathered around him.
– Or lost someone, dear man? Are you one of the nobles yourself, or what? Whose child is it? - they asked him.
Pierre answered that the child belonged to a woman in a black cloak, who was sitting with the children in this place, and asked if anyone knew her and where she had gone.
“It must be the Anferovs,” said the old deacon, turning to the pockmarked woman. “Lord have mercy, Lord have mercy,” he added in his usual bass voice.
- Where are the Anferovs! - said the woman. - The Anferovs left in the morning. And these are either the Marya Nikolaevnas or the Ivanovs.
“He says she’s a woman, but Marya Nikolaevna is a lady,” said the yard man.
“Yes, you know her, long teeth, thin,” said Pierre.
- And there is Marya Nikolaevna. “They went into the garden, when these wolves swooped in,” the woman said, pointing at the French soldiers.
“Oh, Lord have mercy,” the deacon added again.
- You go over there, they are there. She is. “I kept getting upset and crying,” the woman said again. - She is. Here it is.
But Pierre did not listen to the woman. For several seconds now, without taking his eyes off, he looked at what was happening a few steps away from him. He looked at the Armenian family and two French soldiers who approached the Armenians. One of these soldiers, a small, fidgety man, was dressed in a blue overcoat belted with a rope. He had a cap on his head and his feet were bare. The other, who especially struck Pierre, was a long, stooped, blond, thin man with slow movements and an idiotic expression on his face. This one was dressed in a frieze hood, blue trousers and large torn boots. A little Frenchman, without boots, in a blue hiss, approached the Armenians, immediately, saying something, took hold of the old man’s legs, and the old man immediately began hastily to take off his boots. The other, in a hood, stopped opposite the beautiful Armenian woman and silently, motionless, holding his hands in his pockets, looked at her.
“Take, take the child,” said Pierre, handing over the girl and addressing the woman imperiously and hastily. - Give it to them, give it to them! - he shouted almost at the woman, putting the screaming girl on the ground, and again looked back at the French and the Armenian family. The old man was already sitting barefoot. The little Frenchman took off his last boot and clapped the boots one against the other. The old man, sobbing, said something, but Pierre only caught a glimpse of it; all his attention was turned to the Frenchman in the hood, who at that time, slowly swaying, moved towards the young woman and, taking his hands out of his pockets, grabbed her neck.
The beautiful Armenian woman continued to sit in the same motionless position, with her long eyelashes lowered, and as if she did not see or feel what the soldier was doing to her.
While Pierre ran the few steps that separated him from the French, a long marauder in a hood was already tearing the necklace she was wearing from the Armenian woman’s neck, and the young woman, clutching her neck with her hands, screamed in a shrill voice.
– Laissez cette femme! [Leave this woman!] - Pierre croaked in a frantic voice, grabbing the long, hunched soldier by the shoulders and throwing him away. The soldier fell, got up and ran away. But his comrade, throwing away his boots, took out a cleaver and menacingly advanced on Pierre.
- Voyons, pas de betises! [Oh well! Don’t be stupid!] – he shouted.
Pierre was in that rapture of rage in which he remembered nothing and in which his strength increased tenfold. He rushed at the barefoot Frenchman and, before he could take out his cleaver, he had already knocked him down and was hammering at him with his fists. An approving cry from the surrounding crowd was heard, and at the same time a mounted patrol of French lancers appeared around the corner. The lancers trotted up to Pierre and the Frenchman and surrounded them. Pierre did not remember anything of what happened next. He remembered that he had beaten someone, he had been beaten, and that in the end he felt that his hands were tied, that a crowd of French soldiers was standing around him and searching his dress.
“Il a un poignard, lieutenant, [Lieutenant, he has a dagger,”] were the first words that Pierre understood.
- Ah, une arme! [Ah, weapons!] - said the officer and turned to the barefoot soldier who was taken with Pierre.
“C"est bon, vous direz tout cela au conseil de guerre, [Okay, okay, you’ll tell everything at the trial," said the officer. And after that he turned to Pierre: “Parlez vous francais vous?” [Do you speak French? ]
Pierre looked around him with bloodshot eyes and did not answer. His face probably seemed very scary, because the officer said something in a whisper, and four more lancers separated from the team and stood on both sides of Pierre.
– Parlez vous francais? – the officer repeated the question to him, staying away from him. - Faites venir l "interprete. [Call an interpreter.] - From behind the ranks he left little man in civilian Russian dress. Pierre, by his attire and speech, immediately recognized him as a Frenchman from one of the Moscow shops.
“Il n"a pas l"air d"un homme du peuple, [He doesn’t look like a commoner," said the translator, looking at Pierre.
– Oh, oh! ca m"a bien l"air d"un des incendiaires," the officer blurred. "Demandez lui ce qu"il est? [Oh, oh! he looks a lot like an arsonist. Ask him who he is?] he added.
- Who are you? – asked the translator. “The authorities must answer,” he said.
– Je ne vous dirai pas qui je suis. Je suis votre prisonnier. Emmenez moi, [I won't tell you who I am. I am your prisoner. Take me away,” Pierre suddenly said in French.
- Ah, Ah! – the officer said, frowning. - Marchons!
A crowd gathered around the lancers. Closest to Pierre stood a pockmarked woman with a girl; When the detour started moving, she moved forward.
-Where are they taking you, my darling? - she said. - This girl, what am I going to do with this girl, if she’s not theirs! - the woman said.
– Qu"est ce qu"elle veut cette femme? [What does she want?] - asked the officer.
Pierre looked like he was drunk. His ecstatic state intensified even more at the sight of the girl he had saved.
“Ce qu"elle dit?” he said. “Elle m”apporte ma fille que je viens de sauver des flammes,” he said. - Adieu! [What does she want? She is carrying my daughter, whom I saved from the fire. Farewell!] - and he, not knowing how this aimless lie escaped him, walked with a decisive, solemn step among the French.
The French patrol was one of those that were sent by order of Duronel to various streets of Moscow to suppress looting and especially to capture the arsonists, who, according to the general opinion of the French that day, senior officials, were the cause of fires. Having traveled around several streets, the patrol picked up five more suspicious Russians, one shopkeeper, two seminarians, a peasant and a servant, and several looters. But of all the suspicious people, Pierre seemed the most suspicious of all. When they were all brought to spend the night in big house on Zubovsky Val, in which a guardhouse was established, Pierre was placed separately under strict guard.
In St. Petersburg at this time, in the highest circles, with greater fervor than ever, there was a complex struggle between the parties of Rumyantsev, the French, Maria Feodorovna, the Tsarevich and others, drowned out, as always, by the trumpeting of the court drones. But calm, luxurious, concerned only with ghosts, reflections of life, St. Petersburg life went on as before; and because of the course of this life it was necessary to do great effort in order to be aware of the danger and the difficult situation in which the Russian people found themselves. There were the same exits, balls, the same french theater, the same interests of the courtyards, the same interests of service and intrigue. Only in the highest circles were efforts made to recall the difficulty of the present situation. They talked in whispers about how they acted opposite to each other, in such difficult circumstances, both empresses. Empress Maria Feodorovna, concerned about the welfare of the charitable and educational institutions under her jurisdiction, made an order to send all institutions to Kazan, and the things of these institutions were already packed. Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna, when asked what orders she wanted to make, with her characteristic Russian patriotism, deigned to answer that she could not make orders about state institutions, since this concerned the sovereign; about the same thing that personally depends on her, she deigned to say that she will be the last to leave St. Petersburg.
Anna Pavlovna had an evening on August 26, the very day of the Battle of Borodino, the flower of which was to be the reading of the letter from the Eminence, written when sending the image of the venerable saint Sergius to the sovereign. This letter was revered as an example of patriotic spiritual eloquence. It was to be read by Prince Vasily himself, famous for his art of reading. (He also read for the Empress.) The art of reading was considered to consist in pouring out words loudly, melodiously, between a desperate howl and a gentle murmur, completely regardless of their meaning, so that, quite by chance, a howl would fall on one word, and a murmur on others. This reading, like all Anna Pavlovna’s evenings, had political significance. At this evening there were to be several important persons who had to be shamed for their trips to the French theater and encouraged into a patriotic mood. Quite a lot of people had already gathered, but Anna Pavlovna had not yet seen all the people she needed in the living room, and therefore, without starting to read yet, she started general conversations.
The news of the day that day in St. Petersburg was the illness of Countess Bezukhova. A few days ago the Countess unexpectedly fell ill, missed several meetings of which she was an adornment, and it was heard that she did not see anyone and that instead of the famous St. Petersburg doctors who usually treated her, she entrusted herself to some Italian doctor who treated her with some new and in an extraordinary way.
Everyone knew very well that the illness of the lovely countess was due to the inconvenience of marrying two husbands at once and that the Italian’s treatment consisted of eliminating this inconvenience; but in the presence of Anna Pavlovna, not only did no one dare to think about it, but it was as if no one knew it.
- On dit que la pauvre comtesse est tres mal. Le medecin dit que c"est l"angine pectorale. [They say that the poor countess is very bad. The doctor said it was a chest disease.]
- L"angine? Oh, c"est une maladie terrible! [Chest disease? Oh, this is a terrible disease!]
- On dit que les rivaux se sont reconcilies grace a l "angine... [They say that the rivals were reconciled thanks to this illness.]
The word angine was repeated with great pleasure.
– Le vieux comte est touchant a ce qu"on dit. Il a pleure comme un enfant quand le medecin lui a dit que le cas etait dangereux. [The old count is very touching, they say. He cried like a child when the doctor said that dangerous case.]
- Oh, ce serait une perte terrible. C"est une femme ravissante. [Oh, that would be a great loss. Such a lovely woman.]
“Vous parlez de la pauvre comtesse,” Anna Pavlovna said, approaching. “J"ai envoye savoir de ses nouvelles. On m"a dit qu"elle allait un peu mieux. Oh, sans doute, c"est la plus charmante femme du monde," Anna Pavlovna said with a smile at her enthusiasm. – Nous appartenons a des camps differents, mais cela ne m"empeche pas de l"estimer, comme elle le merite. Elle est bien malheureuse, [You are talking about the poor countess... I sent to find out about her health. They told me she was feeling a little better. Oh, without a doubt, this is the loveliest woman in the world. We belong to different camps, but that doesn't stop me from respecting her on her merits. She is so unhappy.] – added Anna Pavlovna.
Believing that with these words Anna Pavlovna was slightly lifting the veil of secrecy over the countess’s illness, one careless young man allowed himself to express surprise that famous doctors were not called in, but that the countess was being treated by a charlatan who could give dangerous remedies.
“Vos informations peuvent etre meilleures que les miennes,” Anna Pavlovna suddenly attacked the inexperienced man with venom. young man. – Mais je sais de bonne source que ce medecin est un homme tres savant et tres habile. C"est le medecin intime de la Reine d"Espagne. [Your news may be more accurate than mine... but I am from good sources I know that this doctor is a very learned and skillful person. This is the life physician of the Queen of Spain.] - And thus destroying the young man, Anna Pavlovna turned to Bilibin, who, in another circle, picked up the skin and, apparently, about to loosen it to say un mot, spoke about the Austrians.
“Je trouve que c"est charmant! [I find it charming!],” he said about the diplomatic paper with which the Austrian banners taken by Wittgenstein were sent to Vienna, le heros de Petropol [the hero of Petropol] (as he was called in Petersburg).
- How, how is this? - Anna Pavlovna turned to him, awakening silence to hear the mot, which she already knew.
And Bilibin repeated the following original words of the diplomatic dispatch he compiled:
“L"Empereur renvoie les drapeaux Autrichiens,” said Bilibin, “drapeaux amis et egares qu"il a trouve hors de la route, [The Emperor sends the Austrian banners, friendly and lost banners that he found outside the real road.],” Bilibin finished , loosening the skin.
“Charmant, charmant, [Lovely, charming,” said Prince Vasily.
“C"est la route de Varsovie peut être, [This is the Warsaw road, maybe.] - Prince Hippolyte said loudly and unexpectedly. Everyone looked back at him, not understanding what he wanted to say by this. Prince Hippolyte also looked back with cheerful surprise around him. He, like others, did not understand what the words he said meant. During his diplomatic career, he more than once noticed that the words spoken in this way suddenly turned out to be very witty, and he said these words just in case, the first ones that came to his mind. “Maybe it will work out very well,” he thought, “and if it doesn’t work out, they will be able to arrange it there.” Indeed, while an awkward silence reigned, that insufficiently patriotic face entered Anna Pavlovna, and she, smiling and shaking her finger at Ippolit, invited Prince Vasily to the table, and, presenting him with two candles and a manuscript, asked him to begin. Everything fell silent.
- Most merciful Emperor! - Prince Vasily declared sternly and looked around the audience, as if asking if anyone had anything to say against this. But no one said anything. - “The Mother See of Moscow, New Jerusalem“, accepts his Christ,” he suddenly emphasized his words, “like a mother into the arms of her zealous sons, and through the emerging darkness, seeing the brilliant glory of your power, sings in delight: “Hosanna, blessed is he who comes!” – Prince Vasily said these last words in a crying voice.
In 1921, seventeen-year-old Gustav Lenk became one of the members of A. Hitler's Nazi party. Lenk made a proposal to Adolf Hitler to create a youth organization within the party. In the spring of 1922, a youth group appeared in the Nazi party, which was immediately reported by the Nazi party newspaper Völkischer Beobachter.
Where could the first congress of young Nazis take place? That's right, in a pub! In a pub in the city of Munich with the colorful name Bürgerbrau Keller. It was in that beer hall in 1923 that Adolf Hitler and his comrades, with a terrible hangover, staged the famous Beer Hall Putsch. The new organization accepted children no older than seventeen years old. Lenk worked hard to improve his brainchild, dividing it into two categories: one - from 14 to 16 years old, the second - from 16 to 18 years old. 
The youth organization had to work in conditions of great competition - in Germany several movements fought for youth, for example, the Wandervogel organization created in 1896 or the Boy Scouts. However, Mr. Lenk showed himself, despite his small age, to be a very smart organizer - by 1923, youth cells of the NSDAP flourished not only in Germany, but also in Czechoslovakia and Austria. Today these cells are referred to by historians as Adolf Hitler's Jungsturm.
After the failures of the Beer Hall Putsch in Munich, which took place in November 1923, the future Fuhrer went to jail, where he spent all his time until April 1924. The National Socialist Party and its youth wing were outlawed. However, the young fascist youth continued to exist under other names, because of which, ultimately, Lenk ended up in the same place as Adolf Hitler - in places not so distant.
After his release from prison, Hitler set about rebuilding the Nazi Party with renewed energy, relying on a non-violent seizure of power in the country through political methods. At that time, the Youth League of the party received a new name - the Great German Movement. The old leader, Gustav Lake, fell out of favor with the head of the NSDAP and was replaced by a new favorite - Kurt Gruber, a member of the NSDAP since 1923. On July 4, 1926, the movement became known as the "Hitler Youth" - the All-German Youth Organization. A. Hitler, Gruber became the first Reichsfuehrer. Under the leadership of Gruber, the Hitler Youth in 1927 - 1928. increased its numbers tenfold. and in 1928 - 1929 - another 30%. During this period, a section for the youngest - aged 6 to 10 years - appeared in the party. The Jungfolk organization consisted of boys aged 10-14 years, and the Hitler Youth - boys aged 14-18 years. At the same time it was introduced new uniform for members of youth organizations, the uniform was “retired” from the assault uniform for members of youth organizations, the uniform was “retired” from the SA assault uniform: brown shirt, black shorts, red armband with a black swastika on a white background.
Everything passes, Gruber’s time has passed, Hitler replaced the young careerist in October 1931 with the aristocrat Baldur von Schirach. Von Schirach was given the title of Reich Youth Fuhrer. The youth organization was built according to military standards with a strict hierarchy, a vertical of power. The Hitler Youth organization played a significant role in conducting explanatory work with the electorate in the 1932 elections. Political battles then often turned bloody, where the paramilitary training of the Hitler Youth came in very handy.
In the elections in the spring of 1932, the NSDAP received 37% of the vote, and by July the party had doubled its size, becoming the most powerful political force in Germany. On January 30, 1930, German President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Adolf Hitler as Chancellor.
Successes in the political field allowed von Schirach to unite all youth organizations in Germany under the banner of the Hitler Youth. In about 400 other German youth organizations there were about 6 million underage people. All these young people fell under the wing of von Schirach overnight. Jewish, Catholic and communist youth groups were to be disbanded, and Protestant cells were integrated into the Hitler Youth. In 1932, the Hitler Youth had 107,000 members, in 1933 - 2,300,000, and in 1939 - already 7,300,000.
Further restructuring affected Jungfolk, children aged 10-14 years. The Jungfolkists underwent initial military training and were trained in the field of Nazi ideology, the guys were instilled with a cult of athleticism and strength, and the racial superiority of the Aryans over other “Untermenmen”. After passing all the required exams, the young men received the right to wear the uniform and dagger of the Hitler Youth. The daggers of the Hitler Youth were inscribed with “Blul und Ehre” - blood and honor.
Young men were accepted into the Hitler Youth at the age of fourteen, the age limit for a member of the Hitler Youth was set at 18 years. Girls were also included in the movement, the women's wing of the Hitler Youth was called Bund Dcutscher made! - League of German girls. The girls were prepared for bed, sorry - for the role of faithful wives and mothers of true Aryans. Members of the Hitler Youth were involved in socially useful work, in particular, to work on agricultural farms (collective potato harvesting trips were practiced). For example, in 1935, approximately 200,000 members of the Hitler Youth were employed in agricultural work from spring to autumn. The guys also happily worked on road works, logging, weeding, etc.
Orthodox training for members of the movement has been mandatory since 1937. Young people were prepared for service in one of the three main types of troops. The Flieger Hitler Youth included guys who dreamed of the sky; they visited Luftwaffe airfields and flew as passengers on combat aircraft. Already in 1934, the Hitler Youth launched a program “from model to glider, from glider to airplane.”
With the creation of the National Socialist Air Corps (NSFK) in 1937, boys aged 18 and over began to learn to fly gliders and airplanes. The number of such young pilots quickly reached 78,000. Young people wandering at sea joined the Marina Hitler Youth. Here the boys were taught sailing, sailing and navigation. The number of Marine Hitler Youth in a short period of time increased to 62,000 members.
The Motor Hitler Youth trained mechanics and drivers of motorcycles and cars. In 1938, the Motor Hitler Youth numbered 28,000 people who had received a driving license.
Young radio operators, anti-aircraft gunners, orderlies and paratroopers were trained in much smaller numbers. All members of the Hitler Youth were taught to use small arms. In 1938, approximately 75% of the 1,200,000 Hitler Youth knew how to shoot rifles, and they often sang something like this:
-Let's take new rifles
-They have flags on them
-And with a song, let’s go to the rifle circles!
Hitler Youth at War
Soon after the start of the war, increased attention was paid to rifle training for members of the Hitler Youth. Members of the Jungfolk were engaged in collecting scrap metal, waste paper, non-ferrous metals, empty bottles (no joke!).
In 1940, Schirach was removed from his post as head of the Hitler Youth. Von Schirach was succeeded in August 1940 by Reich Youth Fuhrer Arthur Axman, who began his career as a Nazi pioneer with the formation of the first NSDAP youth group in Westphalia in 1928. Axman took part in the war with France.
Aksman arrived on the Eastern Front, where in 1941 he lost one arm. In 1942, special camps, Wehrertichtigungslager, were organized, where boys aged 15 to 18 underwent an intensive three-week training course. In total, there were 226 such camps in the Reich. Both the Wehrmacht and the SS troops showed interest in the camps in terms of future recruits, although the SS considered the political training of Wehrertichtigungslager camp graduates to be insufficient.
In 1943, Hitler ordered teenagers at the age of 15 to serve in the anti-aircraft artillery units of the Reich defense. They tried to send the guys to serve in anti-aircraft batteries located close to the place of residence of the recruits, but this did not always work out - the young fosterlings of the Hitler Youth served in air defense units scattered throughout Germany.
In 1944, military luck finally turned against the Germans. Under these conditions, the high command of the armed forces was forced to form youth military units.
The reserve of cannon fodder looked very respectable if you counted it head by head: 62,000 guys from the Labor Front. 170,000 17-year-old teenagers completed primary school military training, another 25,000 young and unintelligent heads were listed in the training centers of the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine. On September 25, 1944, Hitler ordered the formation of units people's militia- Folkeshturm. All males between the ages of sixteen and sixty were taken into the Volkesturm. However, the people's militia in Germany essentially did not work out - the number of Volkeshturm in the best times did not exceed 60,000 people.
At the end of March 1945, Reich Youth Fuhrer Arthur Axmann announced the formation of special tank destroyer teams. The teams were formed from members of the Hitler Youth and were armed with Faustpatrons. Each team consisted of 9 fighters, 6 of them were armed with panzerfausts, and three made up the machine gun crew, designed to cover the actions of the faustians with fire. In April 1945, approximately 2,000 such teams operated against Soviet tanks in the suburbs of Berlin, which completely ceased to exist by April 20.
In the last days of the Third Reich, Nazi propaganda inflated the myth of the “Werewolf” - partisans of Aryan origin who allegedly sowed terror in the rear of the Allied troops. In fact, a few werewolves carried out rare acts of sabotage on the routes of communication and engaged in terror against enemy soldiers who had lagged behind their units. The majority of the werewolves were youngsters, almost children. The attitude of the Allies towards the Werewolfs captured alive was a little more humane than the Germans’ attitude towards the Soviet partisans: Werewolf members were simply shot without trial, they did not suffer before death.
After the end of the war, the former Reichsjugendführer Baldur von Schirach was captured and was sentenced to 25 years in prison on October 1, 1946 for “crimes against humanity.” Arthur Axman managed to escape from Berlin, besieged by the Red Army, and hid from justice until December 1945.
12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Youth", 1943 - 1945.
The idea of forming a Waffen SS division from seventeen-year-old members of the Hitler Youth came to the mind of Arthur Axmann, but even earlier, in February 1943, SS Gruppenführer Gottlieb Berger, head of the SS recruiting department, made a similar proposal. Berger came up with a corresponding proposal to his boss, Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler. Himmler liked Berger's idea. The actual date of formation of the division is considered to be June 1, 1943, but the selection of personnel for the division began in the spring.
The official date of formation is June 24, 1943, on this day the formation received the name: SS Panzergrenadier Division "Hitler Youth". By the end of the summer, 10,000 guys from the Hitler Youth and the labor front were gathered in the military town of Beverlo near Berlin. Here the training of division personnel and the formation of units began. It was decided to draw the core of the personnel and command cadres of the new SS division from the famous formation - the 1st SS Panzergrenadier Division "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler", even despite the heavy losses suffered by the Standarte on the Eastern Front. SS Oberführer Fritz Witt, who commanded the 1st SS Panzergrenadier Regiment, was appointed commander of the new division. Witt was one of the first 120 fighters of the Leibstandarte. A recipient of many badges of military valor, Witt received the Knight's Cross on September 4, 1940, as an SS Sturmbannführer and commander of the 1st battalion of the SS Deutschland Regiment. On March 1, 1943, Witt received oak leaves for the Knight's Cross as a reward, and on July 1 he became an SS Oberführer. At the age of 35, Fritz Wigg received the rank of Brigadeführer - Major General of the SS, becoming the second youngest of the young generals of the German armed forces, besides Witt in new division Many experienced and honored officers of the SS division “Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler” passed over.
SS Standartenführer Kurt Meyer took over as commander of the 25th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment. Meyer enjoyed a reputation as a tough but fearless commander who did not spare either himself or his men. Meyer received the nickname “Panzermeyer” after he fell from the roof of a house during a pre-war exercise and only cursed. The guy was armored! Panzermeyer received the Knight's Cross on May 18, 1941, Oak Leaves for the Knight's Cross on May 23, 1943.
SS Obersturmbannführer Wilhelm Mohnke, like Wien; came from a cohort of the very first fighters of the Leibstandarte. Monke was entrusted with command of the 26th Panzergrenadier Regiment. Like Meyer, Monke was distinguished by his brutality of views, was rude and unfeminine. Monke's subordinates, if they respected him, did not like him. During the Greek campaign, Monke was seriously wounded, which resulted in the amputation of his leg. The disabled man, however, remained in service.
The command of the 12th SS Panzer Regiment was given to Obersturmbannführer Max Wünsche, who himself went through the Hitler Youth school and joined the SS in July 1933. Being the commander of the 1st battalion of the 1st tank regiment SS Wünsche became a Knight's Cross on February 28, 1943.
In the following months, the regiments that were part of the division were formed. The last tank regiment was formed on November 3. There was a constant shortage of weapons and equipment, especially tanks. It wasn't even enough uniforms, which is why the fighters continued to wear the Hitler Youth uniform or even civilian dress. IN artillery regiment there were only a few howitzers, and the tank regiment had four Pz.Kpfw tanks. IV and three old Pz.Kpfw. III; at the end of November the regiment received ten more “fours”. There was a shortage of ammunition, gasoline, trucks, and half-track armored personnel carriers. On October 30, the division was transferred from panzergrenadier to tank, receiving the name “12th SS Panzer Division Hitler Youth.” In December 1943 - January 1944, the division received Italian trucks, but most of them quickly broke down.
In January 1944, the division had forty Pz.Kpfw, IV tanks. The states were largely equipped with artillery, anti-tank weapons, machine guns, and wheeled vehicles. In March 1944, units of the division's 26th Panzergrenadier Regiment took part in exercises jointly with Pz.Kpfw tank exercises. IV, which entered service with the 1st battalion of the 12th SS Panzer Regiment. The exercise was observed by the commander of the German forces in the West, Field Marshal Gerd von Runstedt and the commander of the 1st tank corps SS Obergruppenführer Sepp Dietrich. The exercises were successful, after which senior observers highly appreciated the preparation of the personnel of the Hitler Youth division for combat operations. However, the division still suffered from acute shortages of literally everything, but in April 1944 it was considered fit to be sent to the front.
In the spring of 1944, the 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Youth" was transferred to France to replace the 10th SS Panzer Division "Fruendsberg" sent from France to the Eastern Front. On April 1, 1944, the first train with people and equipment of the Hitler Youth division arrived in Normandy. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel was convinced that the Allied invasion of Western Europe would take place precisely in Normandy, but he was unable to convince the higher command of the need to concentrate German tank divisions in this French province, which alone would be able to throw enemy troops into the English Channel.
At the top they decided to make a mobile reserve out of tank divisions, stationed in the depths of mainland France. Shortly after midnight on June 6, 1944, as everyone now knows from the Call of Duty game, Allied paratroopers landed in France. The much-awaited Second Front in old Europe was finally opened. The fighting on the coast went on for several hours, and the command Hitler's troops in the West, everyone was slow to bring the mobile reserve into battle, since they were not sure that the main landing force had landed in Normandy. Only at around 5 o’clock in the morning did Runstedt give the order to transfer the 12th SS Panzer Division to the direct subordination of Army Group B, commanded by Rommel, and move the Hitler Youth formation to the Bernau - Lisieux - Wimotheu area. Rommel's headquarters
believed that the entire division should be concentrated in the Lisieux area. The staff argued until the evening; only in the evening was it decided to send the 12th SS Panzer Division and a training tank division to the front to repel the Allied invasion.
Allied air superiority made it almost impossible for German troops to move along French lines of communication during the day. The losses of the Hitler Youth division during the march to Lisieux amounted to 83 people. In the evening, the division's units were still on their way to the front. The first to arrive on the scene was Kurt Meyer's 25th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment and part of 90 Pz.Kpfw tanks. IV 12th Tank Regiment. The early morning of June 7 found these forces in the western outskirts of Caen, where they, together with units of the 21st Panzer Division, held back the Canadian onslaught in the direction of Baron and Authiers. The Germans did not allow the Canadians to capture the airfield in Carpikou, but attacks by German troops at the Thiele-Bayeux line on June 8 were also unsuccessful.
It was during this period that a blatant case of execution of Canadian prisoners of war occurred on the direct orders of Kurt Meyer. This case was widely discussed and condemned in Canada after the war. Cases of execution of prisoners of war without trial or investigation by German troops, cynically speaking, were not something out of the ordinary, especially on the Eastern Front, but usually such things were not documented. The episode with the Canadians has documentary evidence; moreover, it was not some barbaric Red Army soldiers who were shot, but civilized representatives of the Free World.
On June 14, a powerful artillery attack from British ships hit the headquarters of the Hitler Youth division, located southwest of Caen. As a result of the fire raid, division commander Fritz Witt was killed. Kurt Meyer took command of the formation on June 15, becoming the youngest German division commander at 33 years old.
The division spent the next three weeks in fierce fighting in the vicinity of Caen, until the order to retreat came on July 9. Two days later, the remnants of the division went to Potigny to rest and recuperate. By this time, the division had lost 60% of its cannon fodder, almost half of its tanks and half-track armored personnel carriers. On July 18, when the British VIII Corps launched Operation Goodwood, the division was returned to the front, and on July 21, Operation Cobra, the offensive of General Bradley's American First Army, began. As a result of the successful development of Operations Goodwood and Cobra, the Allies crushed the German defenses and entered the vast expanses of central France.
On the evening of August 7, Operation Totalize began - the Allied offensive from Caen to Falaise. The remnants of the Hitler Youth division desperately tried to hold back the onslaught of the superior forces of the anti-Hitler coalition and even launched counterattacks. During one of these counterattacks, Shinchu was recaptured from the allies. However, the Canadians quickly restored the status quo. On August 16, Meyer brought only 500 of his soldiers to Falaise.
The American 3rd Army under General Paton broke through the German defenses at Saint-Lo and rushed east towards the Seine, thereby threatening to encircle 19 German divisions operating against Canadian and British troops south and west of Falaise. The Americans reached Argentan, which was located only 20 miles from the advanced positions of the British and Canadians. On the night of August 19, the encirclement ring around German troops slammed shut near Chamoba. Few soldiers and officers of the 12th Panzer Division managed to escape from the cauldron near Falaise.
From the once powerful and combat-ready SS tank division, 600 people remained without heavy equipment and weapons. The remnants of the division were withdrawn from the front to the Kaiserslauten area for reorganization. Then units of the division took part in rearguard battles in France and Belgium, and in mid-September they returned to Germany again to be replenished with personnel and military equipment. On September 6, Kurt Meyer, dressed in the uniform of a Wehrmacht colonel, was captured near Amiens. SS Sturmbannführer Hubert Meyer, chief of staff of the division, temporarily took command of the division. On November 15, SS Standartenführer Hugo Kraas, who had previously served in the SS division “Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler,” became the commander of the division, or more precisely, the remnants of the division.
On December 16, the division, as part of Sepp Dietrich's 6th SS Panzer Army, took part in the Ardennes Offensive. Composed of the 25th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment and the 277th Volksgrenadier Division battle group Müller attacked in the direction of the villages of Krinkelti Roherat. The actions of Müller's infantry were supported by Panther tanks from the 12th SS Panzer Regiment, part of Kampfgruppe Kuhlmann.
The villages, according to the operation plan, should have been captured at the very beginning of the offensive, but due to fierce resistance on the evening of December 18, the settlements were still held by the Americans. The tanks of the 12th SS Regiment withdrew back, where they were redirected to capture Büllingen and the Batgenbach House in cooperation with the 12th Volksgrenadier Division and the remnants of Kampfgruppe Kuhlmann. For three days this combined group tried to break the resistance of the Yankees who held the defense here. The last German attack, supported by Brummbar self-propelled guns from Sturmpanzer-Abteilung 217, was thwarted by fire American artillery and tank destroyers.
Meanwhile, Hitler's attention turned to the East, where the situation became more critical day by day. On January 20, 1945, the 6th SS Panzer Army was redeployed to Hungary. In early February, the 1st and 12th SS Panzer Divisions successfully attacked Russian troops and captured a bridgehead on the banks of the Grand River.
In March, the Hitler Youth Division took part in the battle north of Lake Balaton, when German troops made their last attempt to break through to Budapest. The attempt failed. The Eastern Front of the German troops essentially collapsed. The Hitler Youth division quickly escaped the Red Army and surrendered to the Americans.
On May 8, 1945, 455 soldiers and officers of the division with one tank crossed the demarcation line between Soviet and American occupation forces on the Ennz River in Austria and surrendered to units of the American 7th Army.