Literally, the Union of German Lasses.
This was the girls’ equivalent of the Hitler Youth
Movement. The German girls don’t mention
it at all in their letters. This is puzzling at first because it was actually
compulsory. Girls were expected to pay subs and to attend. However, it is
highly likely that it was such a part of their life during the 1930s and the
1940s that they didn’t think to mention it.
It plays an important role in Hani’s thread and becomes
paramilitary when the girls are asked to set Haus Lehrs on fire in the last
desperate weeks of the war.
Girls attended between the ages of 14 and 17. Before that there was the Jungmädel, the
Young Lasses (10-14) and afterwards the BDM-Werk Glaube und Schönheit
Belief and Beauty (17-21).
Some
of the activities were very similar to those of the Hitler Youth – summer camps
for instance. It gave the girls some freedom form the parental home but was
also used as a vehicle for Nazi indoctrination. The girls were also being
trained for the roles as wives, mothers and homemakers.
Some
of the leaders were older than the girls themselves and generally girls only
left the movement, if they had become leaders, in order to marry and start a
family. Gisela in our story is meant to be about three years older than Hani
and Trudi.
As
the war intensified, they became involved in charitable acts such as collecting
clothing and firewood for the Winter Relief or singing in choirs to wounded
soldiers in the hospitals. However, they were also pulled into the Volksstürm
at the end of the war and were expected to fight allied troops. However, this
had never been officially sanctioned by the BDM leadership.
It
was a slightly less harsh regime than the Hitler Youth and girls on the whole
tended to enjoy being members of the movement.
Even our Hani managed to become a model member and none of the German
girls complained.
The
uniform was extremely smart: dark navy skirt, white shirt, black neckerchief
and a khaki or dark blue greatcoat and flying jacket. One wonders how they
managed to afford this in the impoverished time of the 1930s and 1940s. Then
there were other uniforms for other occasions: sport, camping, working the
land. The strict dress code helped to enforce the sense of camaraderie and this
is something that the German girls speak about in their letters.
The BDM also provided a
useful platform for athletics events, sports and musical events. Food for thought:
Do you think you would have liked to join the BDM? Why or why not?The uniform was very smart but when you look at old photographs sometimes the girls aren't wearing shoes that go well with their uniform. Why do you think this is?
Can you name some advantages of belonging to an organization like this?
No comments:
Post a Comment