Hitler's Youth groups began in 1922 with a smaller youth group called Jungsturm Adolf Hitler (Adolf Hitler Boy’s Storm Troop) . Later, when Hitler took power his new youth groups wiped out all other youth groups, forcing everyone to join his groups. The men's group was focused on preparing the young boys for war and the girls, coincidentally were preparing the girls for motherhood.
At age ten, boys joined Deutsches Jungvolk (German Young People), and girls joined Jungmadelbund (League of Young Girls). At age 13, the boys moved forward to Hitler Jugend (Hitler Youth) and learned how to throw a grenade, dig a trench read a map gas defense and pistol shooting. Girls moved to the next category a age 14, which was called Bund Deutscher Madel (League of German Girls). Here they had to be able to run 60 meters in 14 seconds, complete a 2 hour march, throw a ball 12 meters, and know how to make a bed.
Teachers of that time complained that the kids were so tired of their training the night before that the kids were sleepy all through out school. The attendance to the youth programs became very poor and so in 1939, the law on attendance was sharpened and they made the youth groups compulsory.
Rudy Steiner was in the Youth group throughout his childhood. Although it is not mentioned much in the book about his training he would have been in both Deutsches Jungvolk and Hitler Jugend. Rudy probably found his love for running and was able to improve apon it in his youth group, as running and cardio had a major role in these youth groups. Rudy learned to idolise Hitler as a child in his youth group, but if he were to sit and clearly think he might not have liked Hitler so much for his disaproval of Jesse Owens, Rudy Steiners role model and idol. Or maybe he would have gone along with Hitler and would not have liked Jesse Owens.
I think that this shows that the kids who attended these youth groups might not have been seriously thinking about what they were joining and taking part of, as it was, they were kids and young teens, truely not understanding and having a proper grasp of what they were being taught. Maybe Hitler knew this too and decided to use this to his advantage by atemping to brain wash these children early on so they were oblivious and would not second guess anything Hitler said, because that is how they were raised and what they had learned.
The sites:
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/hitler_youth.htm
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/hitleryouth.html
At age ten, boys joined Deutsches Jungvolk (German Young People), and girls joined Jungmadelbund (League of Young Girls). At age 13, the boys moved forward to Hitler Jugend (Hitler Youth) and learned how to throw a grenade, dig a trench read a map gas defense and pistol shooting. Girls moved to the next category a age 14, which was called Bund Deutscher Madel (League of German Girls). Here they had to be able to run 60 meters in 14 seconds, complete a 2 hour march, throw a ball 12 meters, and know how to make a bed.
Teachers of that time complained that the kids were so tired of their training the night before that the kids were sleepy all through out school. The attendance to the youth programs became very poor and so in 1939, the law on attendance was sharpened and they made the youth groups compulsory.
Rudy Steiner was in the Youth group throughout his childhood. Although it is not mentioned much in the book about his training he would have been in both Deutsches Jungvolk and Hitler Jugend. Rudy probably found his love for running and was able to improve apon it in his youth group, as running and cardio had a major role in these youth groups. Rudy learned to idolise Hitler as a child in his youth group, but if he were to sit and clearly think he might not have liked Hitler so much for his disaproval of Jesse Owens, Rudy Steiners role model and idol. Or maybe he would have gone along with Hitler and would not have liked Jesse Owens.
I think that this shows that the kids who attended these youth groups might not have been seriously thinking about what they were joining and taking part of, as it was, they were kids and young teens, truely not understanding and having a proper grasp of what they were being taught. Maybe Hitler knew this too and decided to use this to his advantage by atemping to brain wash these children early on so they were oblivious and would not second guess anything Hitler said, because that is how they were raised and what they had learned.
The sites:
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/hitler_youth.htm
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/hitleryouth.html
The weak must be chiseled away. I want young men and women who can suffer pain. A young German must be as swift as a greyhound, as tough as leather, and as hard as Krupp's steel.
-Hitler, talking about the Hitler Youth.