Hitler Youth

'Whoever has the youth has the future. My teaching will be hard. Weakness will be knocked out of them. A violently active, dominating, brutal youth – that is what I am after.' – Adolf Hitler 

Between 1933 and 1945, the majority of Germany’s children were members of the Hitlerjugend – Hitler Youth – the junior branch of the Nazi Party. Exploring the development, organisation, education and indoctrination of the Hitler Youth, this book also looks at how people resisted it, as well as examining other Nazi youth groups, such as the Jungvolk and Bund Deutscher Mädel (League of German Girls). 

Much of the Hitler Youth training was in preparation for war, and the book examines the organisation’s combat role in World War II, fighting in Waffen-SS, army, air force and navy units, as well as anti-aircraft units, once the tide of war turned against Germany. 

From weekend camps and arts and crafts, to weapons training and the SS Hitlerjugend Division’s fanatical efforts during the closing stages of World War II, to life for Hitler Youth members after the edifice of Nazi Germany had collapsed, Hitler Youth is a highly illustrated, accessible account of the indoctrination of a generation of German children.