The main purpose of Hitler-Jugend (HJ) was to prepare and train the young people of Germany to become fierce young soldiers. This can be seen from the way the group is organized to the activities in which they participate. The students in HJ were organized into squads, platoons, and companies. Sound familiar? That's because the military is organized in the exact same way. Hitler wanted "a brutal, domineering, fearless, cruel youth". To achieve this, he worked to give the young people military training and urged them to focus on being a good Nazi rather than their academic studies. Each young man became a soldier at age eighteen. All of this was to achieve Hitler's main goal of a "Thousand Year Reich", that is making his empire last for at least a thousand years.
"The weak must be chiselled 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."
-Adolf Hitler
As seen in the above quote, Hitler had high expectations for his youth. During HJ meetings, young men participated in "military athletics". This included marching, bayonet drill, grenade throwing, trench digging, map reading, gas defense, use of dugouts, getting under barbed wire 101, and pistol shooting. School teachers often complained that their students could not stay awake in class due to the previous night's workouts.
To add to these exercises, a Hitler Rifle School was established in 1937. One and a half million boys enrolled. Fifty thousand of those boys earned a marksmanship medal which commemorated near perfect shooting at a distance of fifty meters. There were also Hitler Youth Paramilitary Programs for young men to join. These included Flieger-HJ (air force training), Motor-HJ, and Marine-HJ. Fliegler-HJ built gliders and had yearly competitions. They also visited Luftwaffe facilities and took rides in fighters and bombers. Motor-HJ allowed boys sixteen years and older to earn a drivers' license and learn to drive motorcycle. In Marine-HJ young men earned sailing certificates, learned river navigation, and participated in naval exercises aboard military training ships. Another program that Hitler Youth could take part in was WE-Lagers. These camps were three weeks long and trained boys ages 17 and older in military strategies. Hitler Youth also helped with the Reich Postal Service, the fire department, Reich radio stations, and anti-aircraft defense crews.
When the German army took a turn for the worst, Hitler called upon his last arm of defense. The young men in Hitler Youth were called upon to fight. They were used in the Battle of Normandy in June 1944 and were called again in the fall of that year to dig trenches to fend off Allies in the west and tanks coming from the east. Hundreds of miles of trenches were dug frantically by the young men. Despite orders from General Wiedling, Artur Axmann , the leader of Hitler Youth, continued to use the young men throughout the rest of the war. By the end of the war, only 455 out of thousands of officially enlisted young boys were left. Many Allied soldiers that fought against the Hitler Youth tell of the young mens' ferocity while defending their country. They truly believed what they were always taught: Germans were the dominant race.
To add to these exercises, a Hitler Rifle School was established in 1937. One and a half million boys enrolled. Fifty thousand of those boys earned a marksmanship medal which commemorated near perfect shooting at a distance of fifty meters. There were also Hitler Youth Paramilitary Programs for young men to join. These included Flieger-HJ (air force training), Motor-HJ, and Marine-HJ. Fliegler-HJ built gliders and had yearly competitions. They also visited Luftwaffe facilities and took rides in fighters and bombers. Motor-HJ allowed boys sixteen years and older to earn a drivers' license and learn to drive motorcycle. In Marine-HJ young men earned sailing certificates, learned river navigation, and participated in naval exercises aboard military training ships. Another program that Hitler Youth could take part in was WE-Lagers. These camps were three weeks long and trained boys ages 17 and older in military strategies. Hitler Youth also helped with the Reich Postal Service, the fire department, Reich radio stations, and anti-aircraft defense crews.
When the German army took a turn for the worst, Hitler called upon his last arm of defense. The young men in Hitler Youth were called upon to fight. They were used in the Battle of Normandy in June 1944 and were called again in the fall of that year to dig trenches to fend off Allies in the west and tanks coming from the east. Hundreds of miles of trenches were dug frantically by the young men. Despite orders from General Wiedling, Artur Axmann , the leader of Hitler Youth, continued to use the young men throughout the rest of the war. By the end of the war, only 455 out of thousands of officially enlisted young boys were left. Many Allied soldiers that fought against the Hitler Youth tell of the young mens' ferocity while defending their country. They truly believed what they were always taught: Germans were the dominant race.
"While the older generation could still waver, the younger generation has pledged itself to us and is ours, body and soul!"
-Adolf Hitler