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Hitler Youth
NAZI ORGANIZATION

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Alternative Title: Hitler-Jugend

Hitler Youth, German Hitlerjugend, organization set up by Adolf Hitler in 1933 for educating and training male youth in Nazi
principles. Under the leadership of Baldur von Schirach, head of all German youth programs, the Hitler Youth included by 1935
almost 60 percent of German boys. On July 1, 1936, it became a state agency that all young “Aryan” Germans were expected to
join.

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Hitler Youth
Overview of the Hitler Youth.
Contunico © ZDF Enterprises GmbH, Mainz

Upon reaching his 10th birthday, a German boy was registered and investigated (especially for “racial purity”) and, if quali ed,
inducted into the Deutsches Jungvolk (“German Young People”). At age 13 the youth became eligible for the Hitler Youth,
from which he was graduated at age 18. Throughout these years he lived a spartan life of dedication, fellowship, and Nazi
conformity, generally with minimum parental guidance. From age 18 he was a member of the Nazi Party and served in the
state labour service and the armed forces until at least the age of 21.

Two leagues also existed for girls. The League of German Girls (Bund Deutscher Mädel) trained girls ages 14 to 18 for
comradeship, domestic duties, and motherhood. Jungmädel (“Young Girls”) was an organization for girls ages 10 to 14.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Sheetz.

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Hitler Youth
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1933 - 1945

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