Hitler Youth. A youth organization in pre-Nazi and Nazi-controlled Germany. Their job was to influence the country’s youth to the ideology of the Nazi Party. The ultimate goal was to recruit them into the Third Empire (the empire the Nazis wanted to establish). In 1922, the Nazis established a youth group in Munich. The purpose was to educate young people and implant Nazi ideology in them. The group’s goal was to recruit them into the Sturmabteilung, which was the main paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party at the time. In 1926, the group was renamed the Hitler Youth. By the mid-1930s, the organization had grown to over 20,000 members and a new branch was established for younger boys and girls. There were many attempts by the political elite to ban the group. But after Hitler came to power, it became the only legal youth organization in Germany. Students who did not join the group were often forced to write essays entitled “Why I did not join the Hitler Youth”. They were mocked from teachers and classmates. They could even have their diplomas revoked, making it impossible to enter university. By December 1936, the number of Hitler Youth members exceeded five million. In 1939, all German youth were required to join the Hitler Youth, although their parents objected. Parents who objected, faced investigation by the authorities. All other youth organizations were merged with the Hitler Youth and by 1940, the membership had reached another million.
The Hitler Youth was the simplest movement to establish in the Third Empire. The Hitler Youth uniform consisted of black shorts and a khaki shirt. Full members were given a dagger with the inscription “Blood and Honor”. Semitism were often introduced during training. For example, linking Jews to Germany’s defeat in World War I. The Hitler Youth was a media of ensuring the future of Nazi Germany and its members were influenced by Nazi racist ideology. The idea of ​​honorable sacrifice for the motherland was implanted in the youth. Franz Jagemann, a former Hitler member, claims that the idea that “Germany has to survive” was implanted in them. Even if it meant giving up their own lives. Members of the Hitler Youth served with the army and often served in anti-aircraft units in the early stages of the war. By 1943, Nazi leaders decided to use the Hitler Youth to compensate for the massive losses in the German forces. In February of that year, Hitler permit the use of “Hitler Youth” members as soldiers. As the 1930s approached, Hitler Youth activities focused more on military tactics, assault course training and even weapons training.
By the end of the Normandy campaign, they had lost about 3,000 lives. As German casualties mounted, younger members were recruited. By 1945, the German army was routinely recruiting Hitler Youth members as young as 12.
After World War II, Hitler Youth members were found guilty of war crimes. But because of their age, no serious attempt was made to prosecute them. However, adult leaders of the Hitler Youth were tried, although the sentences were comparatively less severe. Many Hitler Youth members later described their loss of freedom, saying: “Hitler had deprived their normal childhood”.