HISTORY IGCSE CONTENT - 20TH CENTURY OPTION - DEPTH STUDY GERMANY: THE NAZI REGIME - YOUNG PEOPLE AND THE NAZI REGIME

1. DEPTH STUDY
GERMANY
THE NAZI REGIME
HOW DID YOUNG PEOPLE
REACT TO NAZI REGIME?
6

2. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
HITLER’s QUOTE
Hitler described the aims of the Adolf Hitler Schools:
We are bringing talented youngsters, the children of the broad mass of our
population. Workers' sons, farmers' sons, whose parents could never afford to
put their children through higher education...
Later on, they will join the Party, they will attend the Ordenburg, they will
occupy the highest positions. We have a goal which may seem fantastic.
We envisage a state in which each post will be held by the ablest son of our
people, regardless of where he comes from. A state in which birth means
nothing, but performance and ability mean everything.
Source: Pine, Lisa (2010). Education in Nazi Germany. New York: Berg.

3. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
INTRODUCTION
The Nazis affected the lives of young people through 2 main channels:
the education system and the youth movement.
The Nazis were aware that if the Third Reich was going to last 1000
years then it was necessary to produce future generations of loyal
Nazis.
The combined impact of school and youth movement would ensure
that young Germans emerged as adults fully familiar with and
accepting of Nazi ideas.

4. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. Dhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5E7WR8TINI
OATH AND
OPPOSITION:
EDUCATION IN THE
THIRD REICH
Once Hitler was
appointed chancellor
in 1933, the Nazis
took control of
education in order to
guarantee support
from future
generations. These
goals were carried
out by the National
Socialist Teacher's
League, the Ministry
of Education, and the
Hitler Youth.
Source: United
States Holocaust
Memorial Museum

5. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
TARGET: THE NAZI SCHOOLS
Every institution was infused with National Socialist ideology and
infiltrated by Nazi personnel in chief positions.
Schools were no exception.
Even before coming to power, Hitler in Mein Kampf had hinted at his
plans for broad educational exploitation.
The Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda exercised
control over virtually every form of expression—radio, theatre, cinema,
the fine arts, the press, churches, and schools.

6. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE FIRST EDUCATIONAL DECREE
The control of the schools began in March 1933 with the issuing of the
first educational decree, which held that “German culture must be
treated thoroughly.”
The Nazi government attempted to control the minds of the young and
intruded Nazi beliefs into the school curriculum.
A major part of biology became “race science,” and health
and physical training did not escape the racial stress.
Geography became geopolitics, the study of the fatherland being
fundamental.
Physical training was made compulsory for all, as was youth labour
service. Much of the fundamental curriculum was not disturbed.

7. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
Adolf Hitler and Nazi Youth leader Baldur von Schirach on their arrival in the stadium for the Hitler Youth rally.

8. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES
Schools and universities were to:
- indoctrinate young people into the racial ideas of Nazism and
make children loyal to Hitler - this was in effect a form of
brainwashing;
- train girls to be good Aryan wives and mothers, and prepare boys
to be effective soldiers;
- make young people “swift as a greyhound, as tough as leather,
and as hard as Krupp steel”.

9. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
TEACHERS
All teachers had to join the Nazi Teachers’ Association, which vetted
them for political and racial suitability.
By 1939, more than 97% of teachers belonged to it.
Jewish teachers were sacked.
Teachers had to go to summer school so they could teach Nazi ideas
effectively.
Pupils were encouraged to inform the authorities if teachers did not
teach and support Nazi ideas.

10. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
TEXTBOOKS
Textbooks were rewritten, especially in history and biology, to promote
Germany’s 'greatness', Aryan 'supremacy' and anti-Semitism.

11. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
CURRICULUM
The curriculum in schools was altered to reflect Nazi ideology and
priorities.
Academic subjects were downgraded.
The importance put on subjects like chemistry and mathematics was
reduced. By the end of the 1930s, religious education was banned.
Fitness was vital so children had at least five one-hour sessions of
physical education (PE) every week, often for two hours per day.
Eugenics was added to the curriculum.
Boys mostly studied history, eugenics and PE.
Boxing was compulsory.
Girls primarily studied home economics, eugenics and PE.

12. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
In 1933, Hitler Youth (HJ) took
over all youth movements in
Germany, except Catholic ones
(which were eliminated in
1936).
The HJ aimed to:
- control the activities of young
people outside the classroom;
- make them loyal to Hitler;
- train boys to be soldiers and
prepare girls to be wives and
mothers.
There were separate
organisations for boys and girls,
and for different age groups.

13. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
WHY YOUNG PEOPLE ENROLLED?
Boys enrolled in the movement at six years old, and joined the main
group, Hitler Youth (HJ), at 14. By 1939, over 90% of German boys were
members. Girls enrolled in the movement at the age of 10. They moved
into the main wing, the League of German Maidens (BDM), at 14.
There were different activities for boys and girls. Boys fired guns and
marched, while girls learnt how to look after a family, but all undertook
fitness and indoctrination classes. There were many reasons why young
people joined the movements:
• Initially membership was voluntary, but it was made compulsory in 1936.
• Young people joined because of peer pressure and the novel activities (camping).
• It was a chance to reject the authority and values of their parents.
• Membership would help them get university places and a better job.
• Many joined hoping that by showing loyalty their families would be safe

14. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS
Adolf Hitler Schools (AHS) were 12 elite
boarding schools run by the SS in Nazi
Germany from 1937 to 1945. Their aim was to
indoctrinate young people into the ideologies
of the Nazi Party. They were for young people
aged 14 to 18 years old and were single sex,
with three schools for girls and the rest for
boys. Selection for admission to the schools
was rigorous; pupils were chosen for their
political dedication and physical fitness, as
opposed to their academic prowess. Activities
focused on political indoctrination rather than
academic studies. The SS often selected future
officers from the schools.
Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1983-056-07,
Adolf-Hitler-Schule, Spind-Kontrolle.

15. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
SELECTION OF PUPILS
Only pupils who were pre-selected from the Hitler Youth were admitted.
This was followed by a two-week selection process at a camp, where the
candidates were evaluated according to specified criteria, standards that
included but were not limited to:
- Leadership qualities, like proving that they excelled as leaders among their
peers
- Racial purity via an evaluation of their physical attributes and proof of Aryan
genealogical ancestry "uncontaminated" by non-Aryan races
- Medical examinations to establish absolute health
- Excelling in competitions designed to test their strength and toughness, like
forced marches, war games, gymnastics, boxing, wrestling, and other feats of
courage
- Strict observance by Hitler Youth leadership of a candidates' social fitness
through contests and their social adaptability during leisure time

16. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS - PART 1
The documentary is apart of a tiny
series called 'Hitler's Children'. This
deals with the elite Adolf Hitler schools,
where a relatively small number of
children were being shaped to inherit
the bridles of power within the future
Nazi Empire. It highlights most of the
elements of Nazi education.
Source: Discovery Channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtzCXSSclo4

17. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS - PART 2
The documentary is apart of a tiny
series called 'Hitler's Children'. This
deals with the elite Adolf Hitler schools,
where a relatively small number of
children were being shaped to inherit
the bridles of power within the future
Nazi Empire. It highlights most of the
elements of Nazi education.
Source: Discovery Channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_hePwtelZw

18. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS - PART 3
The documentary is apart of a tiny
series called 'Hitler's Children'. This
deals with the elite Adolf Hitler schools,
where a relatively small number of
children were being shaped to inherit
the bridles of power within the future
Nazi Empire. It highlights most of the
elements of Nazi education.
Source: Discovery Channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRyX0JoIQMM

19. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS - PART 4
The documentary is apart of a tiny
series called 'Hitler's Children'. This
deals with the elite Adolf Hitler schools,
where a relatively small number of
children were being shaped to inherit
the bridles of power within the future
Nazi Empire. It highlights most of the
elements of Nazi education.
Source: Discovery Channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3wftLV7y-s

20. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS - PART 5
The documentary is apart of a tiny
series called 'Hitler's Children'. This
deals with the elite Adolf Hitler schools,
where a relatively small number of
children were being shaped to inherit
the bridles of power within the future
Nazi Empire. It highlights most of the
elements of Nazi education.
Source: Discovery Channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OztiywMUGw

21. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE ADOLF HITLER SCHOOLS - PART 6
The documentary is apart of a tiny
series called 'Hitler's Children'. This
deals with the elite Adolf Hitler schools,
where a relatively small number of
children were being shaped to inherit
the bridles of power within the future
Nazi Empire. It highlights most of the
elements of Nazi education.
Source: Discovery Channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnXB2wA3hhU

22. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE IMPACT OF ACTIONS AND POLICIES ON YOUTH
The quality and breadth of education in schools deteriorated. Academic
subjects were most affected. There were very few co-educational schools.
Girls educational opportunities decreased. Their curriculum was limited to
home-making subjects and very few went to university by 1939.
Jewish children were persecuted at school and then excluded.
Young people got to experience a range of new activities, like hiking
weekends, in the Hitler Youth. They helped with the collection and
distribution of clothing and food for the poor in winter. Some were
chosen to stand guard outside Hitler’s offices.
They had more freedom from their parents. Slogans like “Youth must be
led by youth” appealed to them.

23. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF NAZI ACTIONS BY 1939
The Nazis’ youth policies had mixed results.
There were some successes.
Seven million joined the Hitler Youth (HJ) movement.
Most young people did not oppose the Nazis. Many obeyed the Nazis
rather than their parents. Some even denounced their parents to the SS.
Germany had a more disciplined youth than in other European countries.
The Nazis succeeded in ending most rival organisations, such as the
Catholic Youth Movement in 1936.
Overall, young people were the most easily attracted to the regimes and
became some of its most active supporters.

24. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
NOT ALL YOUNG PEOPLE COMPLIED
Some even established their own rival groups, such as the Edelweiss
Pirates, the Jazz Group and the Swing Group.
Indoctrination was not totally effective. It reinforced existing beliefs
but was less successful in getting young people to accept new ideas.
The Nazis had less success indoctrinating university students.
Young people became more disillusioned with the youth movements
as the years passed.
The repetitive marching and monotonous propaganda took the fun
out of it, and eventually made young people disinterested in taking
part.

25. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
ARCHIVE PHOTOS

26. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
RACE SCIENCE CLASS
While this classroom
studied “race science,”
Jewish students were
forced to stand at the
of the room. The
blackboard says, “The Jew is
our greatest enemy.”
CREDIT LINE: Top Foto

27. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
HITLER YOUTH HIKING
Hitler Youth groups
educated young people
according to Nazi principles
and encouraged
comradeship and physical
fitness through outdoor
activities.
CREDIT LINE
Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1973-
060-72

28. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
HITLER YOUTH MEMBER IN UNIFORM
A young Hitler Youth member poses in full
uniform in 1934. Bruehl, Germany.
CREDIT LINE: United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum

29. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
HITLER YOUTH MEMBER IN UNIFORM
The League of German Girls
was the girls' wing of the Nazi
Party youth movement. A
typical activity for members
to go on walks while their
mothers were working.
CREDIT LINE: Hoover
Archives

30. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
ACTIVITY 1
Connection Questions “School for Barbarians: Education under the Nazis”
1. What does the reading from your OneNote Reading section reveal about
children’s daily life in Nazi Germany? What might children have learned even
before they arrived at school? How were the streets themselves a kind of
“school” for Nazi ideas?
2. Why would the Nazis focus on controlling the lives of young people?
3. Are there messages about ourselves and others that we hear so often today
in our daily lives that we don’t even think about them?
4. Erika Mann concludes: “The German child breathes this air.” What is in the
“air” we breathe? How do we figure out what messages in our society are
coming from a place of authority? How do we figure out what they mean?

31. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY – MR. D
ACTIVITY 2
Connection Questions “Joining the Hitler Youth”
1. Why you do you think the Nazi leadership wanted all young people to belong
to a Nazi youth group? What were the young boys in this reading being
prepared for through their participation?
2. Why would the authorities want to include Hans Wolf’s story in a school
textbook? What values does the story communicate?
3. How are the two excerpts (by Hans Wolf and Alfons Heck) different? Looking
back, what does Heck see that he might not have been aware of at the time?
4. How do the Nazi youth organizations and their symbols connect with the
idea of a “national community”? How do they connect with the vision of a
nation ready for battle?
5. When is it appealing to join a group? Why might some young people have
joined even if they didn’t fully agree with Nazi policies?