1.  starter activity Reichstag Fire, Feb 1933 Enabling Act, March 1933
Nuremberg Law, 1935 & Kristallnacht, 1938
Night of the Long Knives, June 1934
Persecution of ‘undesirables’
Death of Hindenburg, August 1934
Cult of the Fuhrer
The use of propaganda
The use of terror
Explain how each event helped the Nazis establish control. What’s missing?

2. Families,
education and
Children!

3. How well did the Nazis control the hearts & minds of young people?
 LOs
To explain why millions joined the Hitler Youth
To assess the extent of opposition to the Nazis from young people

4. Typical members of the Hitler Youth (Hitler Jugend, HJ)

6. League of German Maidens

8.  Your task
Read p and make a note of the reasons why so many young people joined the Hitler Youth movement.
Study Source C. How useful is this source in measuring the popularity of the Hitler Youth? What are some of the problems in using it?

9. Reasons for the popularity of Hitler Youth
Tradition of youth groups in Germany (Volk culture)
Alternative youth groups closed
From 1936 membership compulsory
Well organised – different groups for different ages
Hitler Youth, League of German Maidens
1939 – 8 million members!
Baldur von Schirach – Leader of Hitler Youth

10. Reasons for the popularity of Hitler Youth
Range of activities – games, sports, physical education, parade, camping – all appealed to young people
Children were brainwashed into loyalty to Führer
Fed anti-Communist & anti-Semitic hatred
Children believed they were helping the war effort
Hitler Youth soldiers played a crucial role in the defence of Berlin, 1945

11. Not all youths supported the Nazis
Not all youths supported the Nazis. Why would these young people have attracted the attention of the Nazi authorities?

12.  Your task
Did everyone support the Hitler Youth? Read p.151 in your text book and note the reasons why the Nazis would have been horrified by the behaviour of some young people.
Why are there so few examples of young opponents to the Nazis?

13. Opposition from youths
Swing clubs – disrespectful to the Führer, e.g. ‘Heil Benny’ greeting
Edelweiss Pirates – bullied members of the Hitler Youth
Some youths sheltered deserters & escapees
White Rose group – distributed Nazi propaganda

14. Not all youths supported the regime – Sophie Scholl and her brother Hans, members of White Rose

15.  Writing task
Imagine you are on a Hitler Youth training camp. Write a letter to your parents. Refer to the following things in your account:
Different types of organisations (including the illegal ones)
Typical activities – fun & military
Attitude to the Fuhrer
Things you learned about opponents of the regime
How you helped the war effort

16.  Plenary Give 3 examples of typical Nazi activities
List 2 different types of youth organisations
List 2 rival youth organisations
Give 3 reasons why so many young people joined the Hitler Youth
Do you think all young people actually supported the Nazis?