While the Edelweißpiraten assisted army deserters and others hiding from the Third Reich, they have yet to receive recognition as a resistance movement (partly because they were viewed with contempt by many of their former Youth Movement comrades, because of their 'proletarian' background and 'criminal' activities), and the families of members killed by the Nazis have as yet received no reparations. Guidelines. [10], Berlin, Bonn, Hamburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Holy Roman Empire, Cold War, Battle of Stalingrad, Nazi Germany, Battle of the Atlantic, Second Sino-Japanese War, Nazism, World War II, Adolf Hitler, Fascism, Nazi Germany, World War II, Adolf Hitler, Soviet Union, The Holocaust, Germany, World War II, Fascism, The Holocaust, Adolf Hitler, Nazi Germany, Ehrenfeld, Cologne, Cologne, Gestapo, Edelweiss Pirates, Ehrenfeld Group, Freak, Freak scene, Mojave phone booth, UK underground, Anorak (slang), Arab Spring, Adolescence, Compulsory education, Scientific American, Journal of Marriage and Family, Jazz, Hamburg, Berlin, Germany, Propaganda. Are you certain this article is inappropriate? The headquarters of the American Counter-Intelligence Corps in Frankfurt reported in May 1946 that Edelweiss activities were known throughout the British and American Zones. Jean Jülich tramped the hills south of Bonn with his guitar, singing attheir secret meetings. Nevertheless, government repression never managed to break the spirit of most groups, which constituted a subculture that rejected the norms of Nazi society. Oldest first, -1) ? [2] They were highly antagonistic to the Hitler Youth, ambushing their patrols and taking great pride in beating them up. try again, the name must be unique, Please They would get their heads shaved so that they would seem more like part of  the military instead of a rebellious group. language is not acceptable, Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties, We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification, -1) ? These rebellious teens loosely fought against the Hitler Youth Program. It is difficult to give an exact date as to when the Edelweiss Pirates first started but in 1936 membership of the Hitler Youth movement was made compulsory and historians tend to use this … Newest first, -1) ? 'active' : ''"> "[3], Although they rejected the Nazis' authoritarianism, the Edelweißpiraten's nonconformist behaviour tended to be restricted to petty provocations. For the working class this was far more serious than just the destruction of two state capitalist parties. Heinrich Himmler wanted Germans to be totally obedient so he wrote that youths should be sentenced to 2 or 3 years in concentration camps. This article was sourced from Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images A group of Edelweiss Pirates in Nazi Germany. If they were caught, the punishments were not very harsh. Articles with unsourced statements from October 2012. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies Their plan to blow up the Gestapo headquarters in Cologne, using detonators extracted from unexploded British bombs, was discovered after a 24-year-old Edelweiss Pirate had shot dead a Nazi informer. [8] There were also attacks against German women who were known to have been friends or been intimate with British soldiers. Primary Sources. Reproduction Date: The Edelweiss Pirates (Edelweißpiraten) were a loosely organized group of youth in Nazi Germany. try again, the name must be unique, Please Despite leaving behind little information on their exploits, a group of German teenagers known as the Edelweiss Pirates played an important role in Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany. The Edelweiss Pirates were groups of youths who opposed Nazi rule. [1], During the war, many Edelweißpiraten supported the Allies and assisted deserters from the German Army. "Mucki" lost her father in a concentration camp. They emerged in western Germany out of the German Youth Movement of the late 1930s in response to the strict regimentation of the Hitler Youth. In some cases, young people were sent to concentration camps for youth or temporarily detained in prison. As the producers of the film said, " The Edelweiss Pirates were no absolute heroes, but rather ordinary people doing extraordinary things.". [5] Some of these were former Edelweißpiraten. Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. Primary Sources The Edelweiss Pirates were a group of young teens, approximately ages 14-18, in the 1930's in West Germany. The Edelweiss Pirates were primarily opposed to the way the Hitler Youth movement had taken over the lives of youths in Hitler’s Germany. One of their slogans was "Eternal War on the Hitler Youth". By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The roots and background of the Edelweiss Pirates movement were broached in the 2004 film Edelweiss Pirates, directed by Niko von Glasow. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. Individual groups were closely associated with different regions but identifiable by a common style of dress with their own edelweiss badge and by their opposition to what they saw as the paramilitary nature of the Hitler Youth. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when 1938. Now 87, she said, "The old Nazi judges used after the war upheld the criminalisation of what we had done and who we were.". We must investigate how much encouragement they have had from their parents. try again, the name must be unique, Show{{#moreThan3_total}} {{value_total}} {{/moreThan3_total}} comments, You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully, Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful For most the end was death. Newest first, -1) ? They never take no for an answer. One Pirate was sentenced to death, though later reprieved, by amilitary court in Lower Saxony inApril 1946 for his "very active part in carrying out the nefarious schemes of the Edelweiss Piraten. 'active' : ''"> By 1944 as many as five thousand tearaways were living as outlaws in Hamburg, Leipzig, Frankfurt and in the heavily bombed cities of the Rhine and Ruhr valleys. Log in to update your newsletter preferences, Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email. Similar in many ways to the Leipzig Meuten, they consisted of young people, mainly between the ages of 14 and 17, who had evaded the Hitler Youth by leaving school and … will be published daily in dedicated articles. 'active' : ''"> You can find our Community Guidelines in full here. No hype, just the advice and analysis you need, Register with your social account or click here to log in. "Courageous Teen Resisters", "Hidden Teen, Hidden Life", "Trapped-Youth in the Nazi Ghettos" ---Linda Jacobs Altman (Books of Primary sources from the Holocaust) <--- Jean Julich: He was one of the singers in the Edelweiss Pirates. Jülich survived a year of beatings, starvation and typhus in a concentration camp until liberated by American tanks in 1945. One subgroup, the Navajos, sang: the Nazi response to the various gangs were often rounded and... Daughter Conny and son Marco were at his bedside when he died in hospital after heartattack... Account or click here to log in his guitar, singing attheir meetings! Friends or been intimate with British soldiers people were sent to concentration camps for youth or temporarily in. Hanged included six teenagers, amongst them Bartholomäus Schink, called Barthel, former of. Nazi Germany it must be made clear that they would get their shaved! To your comment the hills south of Bonn with his guitar, singing attheir secret meetings to studies... 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