Hitler youth, Nazi schools, and Teenage rebels
what was the Hitler youth and was it well liked?
The Hitler youth, implemented in 1933, was designed to make young boys good, disciplined soldiers by giving them basic military training. The vast majority of young people joined and enjoyed attending the Hitler youth, engaging in a range of activities such as map reading, camp crafts, hiking and cross country.
What did the Hitler youth boys learn about Hitler and his views?
Those in the Hitler youth learnt about the ‘unjustness’ of the Treaty of Versailles and the ‘november criminals. They were taught a biography of Hitlers life and they learnt to feel a great sense of hatred and mistrust toward Jewish people.
Who was eligible for Hitler youth programmes?
By 1936 it was compulsory for ‘Aryan’ youth over the age of 6 to join a youth group. The Hitler youth was only for boys aged 10-18.
Was the Hitler youth programme successful?
They were extremely successful as by 1939 82% of the population aged 10-18 attended Hitler youth.
What did girls attended instead of the Hitler youth?
If you were a girl you would have attended ‘The League of German Maidens’ which prepared girls for motherhood.
What did girls learn at The league of german maidens
They were taught domestic skills such as cooking, cleaning, fixing a household budget and sewing.
How did youth feel about Hitler?
Most boys claimed to feel a genuine loyalty and sense of admiration toward Hitler.
What happend to schools after the Nazi’s came into power?
All schools were placed under the control of the ministry. Jewish teachers were fired and to ensure that teachers could be relied upon to spread the nazi message, they took a loyalty oath to hitler.
How did the school curriculum change?
The curriculum was changed to ensure that the Nazi ideologies were reflected in the teachings of subjects such as biology, history, and mathematics by re-writing textbooks to be anti-jewish and pro Hitler. Additionally all religious education was removed from the curriculum.
What was the swing movement and who was in it?
The Swing movement was an anti-nazi movement, made up of middle class teenagers who were much more interested in being normal teenagers, partying and growing up. This group accepted Jewish people. Those in the swing movement were deliberately “slovenly” and wanted nothing to do with politics.
who were the edelweiss pirates?
The edelweiss pirates were a gang of working-class teens, aged around 14-17 who were against the controlling Nazi regime. This was not an organized movement although it extended right throughout Germany. Groups in various cities took different names, such as; ‘The Roving Dudes’ in Essen and ‘Navajos’ in Cologne.
Why were all these groups then called the Edelweiss pirates
The groups had a lot in common with one another, all rejecting the Nazi Regime. The groups would sing songs, similar to the songs the Hitler youth sung, only changing the lyrics to mock Hitler and Germany. These groups would even taunt and sometimes attack the Hitler youth kids they encountered, and were therefore classified as ‘The edelweiss pirates’ by the Nazi
How were the edelweiss pirates punished?
As Germany wanted more able bodied workers they would not arrest / kill every edelweiss pirate they saw, they would only exterminate ring leaders.
What happened with the Edelweiss pirates in 1942?
In 1942 the Gestapo broke up 28 groups containing 739 youth.
What happened with the Edelweiss pirates in Cologne, 1944?
In 1944, the Pirates stole armaments, attacked the Gestapo, killing a chief, and helping to shelter escaped prisoners. As a punishment, the Nazi’s rounded up tweleve ‘ringleaders’ of the operation and publicly executed them.
How did the Nazi’s genrally regard the actions of the Edelweiss pirates?
As Germany was in need of more able-bodied workers and soldiers, the Nazi’s would not arrest or kill every Edelweiss pirate they encountered, sometimes ignoring them and other times arresting them. Only ringleaders were exterminated.
What did the Swing movement and Edelweiss pirates have in common?
Neither of the teenage rebel groups had strong political views. Neither group was a political opponent of the Nazi’s, the simply resented and resisted the Nazi control of their life.