Fabric Armband of a Boy in the Das Deutsche Jungvolk (DJ) – “German Youngsters” Movement. The Jungvolk, the Nazi Youth Organization for Boys Aged 10-13 in Nazi Germany, Was the Precursor to the Larger “Hitler Youth” Movement. The Official Design of the Movement’s Emblem: A Black “Sigrune” Lightning Bolt on a Red-White Background, Reflecting the Symbols of the Nazi German Flag. Germany, 1930s.
The German Jungvolk (DJ) was the youth organization for boys aged 10-13 during the Nazi era, and it served as a feeder group for the larger Hitler Youth organization. In the summer of 1930, various German, Austrian, and Imperial youth groups, in consultation with the leadership of the Hitler Youth, united to form the “Jungvolk, ” a youth association for Greater Germany. The organization indoctrinated young boys in Nazi ideology, emphasizing absolute loyalty to Adolf Hitler and providing pre-military training. Members of the German Jungvolk officially referred to themselves as “Jungvolkjungen.” The organization was part of the broader Nazi efforts to indoctrinate all aspects of German life. After Hitler’s rise to power in 1933, the number of “Jungvolk” increased significantly through forced disbandment and self-dissolution, as well as by taking over other youth organizations. Boys who did not continue as leaders in the “Jungvolk” were transferred to the Hitler Youth movement. According to the Hitler Youth Law of December 1, 1936, all German youth were required to join a youth movement based on the Führer principle, where, in addition to school and home, they would be trained “physically, mentally, and morally in the spirit of National Socialism to serve the people and the national community.” Loyalty to the Führer was so dominant within the movement that young people were expected to report to their leaders if they heard critical opinions about the Nazi regime within their families. The boys were organized into small groups of 10 members called “Jungenschaft, ” and Baldur von Schirach, the Reich Youth Leader of the NSDAP, declared 1936 as the “Year of the German Jungvolk.” The youngsters held meetings where they sang traditional and national songs, read written materials, used specific forms of tents and musical instruments, and more. The second implementation order (Youth Service Order) to the Hitler Youth Law of March 25, 1939, established compulsory membership in the “German Youngsters” movement. During World War II, the youngsters underwent shooting training (!) and participated in activities such as cleaning operations, collecting clothes and scrap metal, and organizing winter relief efforts. The German Youngsters, as a subsidiary of the Hitler Youth, were banned and disbanded after the war by Allied Control Council Law No. 2, and their assets were confiscated.
For more on the organization,
see here .
22×9 cm (closed). Light stains. Good condition.
