Critically assess the impact of the First World War on the German Youth Movement.
1913 words
This essay will critically assess the impact of the First World War upon the German youth
movement by examining the political stance, ideology, organisation and activities of the
youth movement from 1913 until before Hitler rose to power in 1933. This essay will
compare aspects of the Wandervogel to the Bündische Jugend (Bund) in particular, to
understand how far reaching the consequences of the war were for the youth movement. This
is also done to examine how generational identity was affected within the movement because
of the war, and to assess why the war experience made youths redefine their identity so
dramatically. This essay defines the impact of the First World War as the psychological and
physical effects of World War One. This essay defines the German youth movement as the
cultural movement associated with young people’s outdoor activities. The Wandervogel was
a German youth hiking group that aimed to bring its members closer to nature and was
founded in 1896. Bündische Jugend is the term used when describing the Wandervogel
movement after the First World War.
There is dichotomy between the political agendas of the German Youth Movement before
and after the First World War, due to the harrowing war experience forced upon soldiers of
the youth movement and German society generally. Laquer, a key author on this topic, has
understood this in the realms of sociology. He argued that internal discord initially arose
within the movement in 1913 regarding its political stance, with some members vying for the
movement to become politically involved, whilst most preferred continuation of the
Wandervogel’s traditional apolitical ethos.1 A range of historians have understood the
political radicalism of the movement after the First World War in a variety of contexts.
Niemeyer, rather unconvincingly, treated the Bündische Jugend as radicals with views
warped by the war.2 This was an attempt to bolster his argument that the Wandervogel was
politically innocent and unconnected to the rise of Nazism; his position is that in German
historiography which is plagued by the bias of guilt. Laqueur, like many other scholars,
examined the conservative rebellion within the youth movement as a precursor to Nazism.
However, Stachura most influentially contested that this was not the case. He claimed the
Bündische Jugend did not pioneer Nazism, although he criticised the post war youth
movement for its failure to recognise the dangers of its radical political beliefs, as well as its
largely conservative nature and Volkish ideology.3 The extent to which the movement may
have aided the advance of National Socialism is beyond the scope of this essay, but the
relevant articles may be found here. In 1913, limited members of the Wandervogel harboured
the belief that the youth movement should expand to include political ideas; the Wandervogel
was largely apolitical. In the 1920’s, the youth movement split into many groups of varying
political stances and was highly politicized. Only one group decided to remain apolitical, and
then disintegrated over the course of the interwar years. There were neoconservative,
conservative, communist, nationalist and liberal groups. It seemed that during the Weimar
1
Walter Laqueur, Young Germany: History of the German Youth Movement, (London: Transaction Publishers,
1984).
2
Christian Niemeyer, ‘Sozialpädagogik und Jugendbewegung’, in Christian Niemeyer (ed.), Sozialpädagogik als
Wissenschaft und Profession (Weinheim: Juventa Verlag, 2003), pp. 117-18.
3
Peter Stachura, The German Youth Movement 1900-45, (London: Macmillan, 1981).
1913 words
This essay will critically assess the impact of the First World War upon the German youth
movement by examining the political stance, ideology, organisation and activities of the
youth movement from 1913 until before Hitler rose to power in 1933. This essay will
compare aspects of the Wandervogel to the Bündische Jugend (Bund) in particular, to
understand how far reaching the consequences of the war were for the youth movement. This
is also done to examine how generational identity was affected within the movement because
of the war, and to assess why the war experience made youths redefine their identity so
dramatically. This essay defines the impact of the First World War as the psychological and
physical effects of World War One. This essay defines the German youth movement as the
cultural movement associated with young people’s outdoor activities. The Wandervogel was
a German youth hiking group that aimed to bring its members closer to nature and was
founded in 1896. Bündische Jugend is the term used when describing the Wandervogel
movement after the First World War.
There is dichotomy between the political agendas of the German Youth Movement before
and after the First World War, due to the harrowing war experience forced upon soldiers of
the youth movement and German society generally. Laquer, a key author on this topic, has
understood this in the realms of sociology. He argued that internal discord initially arose
within the movement in 1913 regarding its political stance, with some members vying for the
movement to become politically involved, whilst most preferred continuation of the
Wandervogel’s traditional apolitical ethos.1 A range of historians have understood the
political radicalism of the movement after the First World War in a variety of contexts.
Niemeyer, rather unconvincingly, treated the Bündische Jugend as radicals with views
warped by the war.2 This was an attempt to bolster his argument that the Wandervogel was
politically innocent and unconnected to the rise of Nazism; his position is that in German
historiography which is plagued by the bias of guilt. Laqueur, like many other scholars,
examined the conservative rebellion within the youth movement as a precursor to Nazism.
However, Stachura most influentially contested that this was not the case. He claimed the
Bündische Jugend did not pioneer Nazism, although he criticised the post war youth
movement for its failure to recognise the dangers of its radical political beliefs, as well as its
largely conservative nature and Volkish ideology.3 The extent to which the movement may
have aided the advance of National Socialism is beyond the scope of this essay, but the
relevant articles may be found here. In 1913, limited members of the Wandervogel harboured
the belief that the youth movement should expand to include political ideas; the Wandervogel
was largely apolitical. In the 1920’s, the youth movement split into many groups of varying
political stances and was highly politicized. Only one group decided to remain apolitical, and
then disintegrated over the course of the interwar years. There were neoconservative,
conservative, communist, nationalist and liberal groups. It seemed that during the Weimar
1
Walter Laqueur, Young Germany: History of the German Youth Movement, (London: Transaction Publishers,
1984).
2
Christian Niemeyer, ‘Sozialpädagogik und Jugendbewegung’, in Christian Niemeyer (ed.), Sozialpädagogik als
Wissenschaft und Profession (Weinheim: Juventa Verlag, 2003), pp. 117-18.
3
Peter Stachura, The German Youth Movement 1900-45, (London: Macmillan, 1981).
