UNSERE WEHRMACHT
Teil I: Das Heer
Picture book for the education of the Hitler-Jugend
The enthusiasm for the armed forces of the German Reich does not need to be taught to
our youth. They all know the glorious tradition of our army, the heroic struggle of the
German soldier in the World War, the reconstruction of German dignity and the glorious
successes of Hitler’s armed forces. Our youth has experienced these things with
throbbing hearts.
In the present picture book on the army and in the following books on the air force and
the navy, a clearer picture of the national socialist movement will be presented, in that
participation in the military is a service of honor for the German people. The picture
book will emphasize that in spite of all the traditions, Hitler’s armed forces are
differentiated from previous views about the soldier as such: his experiences, his basic
training, surroundings, and relationships to his superiors.
This picture book forms an introduction and basis to both of the following. The book on
the armed forces has the subject “army;” nevertheless, it fulfills a special task, that is, of
showing our youth all branches of the armed services, and the army will be now and
forever the most important branch of the military.
SECTIONS OF THE PICTURE BOOK
Pictures 1—5: Military training in the Hitler-Youth.
Pictures 1—13: The new surroundings of the recruit.
Pictures 7—21: The basic training of the recruit.
Pictures 22—29: The branches of service.
Pictures 22—34: The military superior.
Picture 35: The iron cross.
Pictures 36—37: The Leader
Picture 1: “In the armed forces the youth is changed into a man, and in this school
he is to learn not only obedience, but also the conditions for making later
commands.”
The Leader in “Mein Kampf”
Picture 2: The soldier’s training begins in the HJ (Hitler Youth).
The Hitler Youth does not conduct pre-military training in the sense that the basic
training period of the German soldier begins when he is ten years old. The young boy
learns a soldier’s training, which develops all the qualities of character that are a
prerequisite for his later training with weapons. That military methods find application is
only a means for attaining the goal of his training. The Hitler Youth must learn to control
his desires and his body. He must know that the will for defense and also the use of
weapons belong to the soldier. He must develop an instinctive feeling regarding his
behavior in “serious cases.” Therefore he will be guided in all aspects of terrain and
shooting exercises that develop security in his instincts.
Picture 3: New recruits reading maps.
Knowledge of terrain, map reading, marching exercises, estimation of distances,
camouflage, and terrain utilization are the forms of practice for the Hitler Youth.
Picture 4: Hitler Youth at shooting practice.
It is not so important that the youth can answer the question militarily perfectly as to what
constitutes shooting. On the shooting range he needs to become “familiar,” so that he
takes seriously the meaning and care of weapons, which will be important to him when
he later becomes a soldier. Strict orderliness on the shooting range and exact completion
of his basic training are as important as shooting at the target.
Picture 5: Ten knee-bends without pounding of the heart.
Is it possible to convince a youth of the duty of good health and care of his body better
than with the reminder that these elements are the basic requirement for being called to
honorary service?
Picture 6: With conscription a new and different life begins.
Picture 7: The first time.
At the barracks the first division of the recruits takes place. The rooms are assigned, and
they receive their first commands. Obedience and fitting into the group determine the life
of the young soldier from now on.
Picture 8. A new home.
Basic training does mean a lack of comfort or neglect of civilization; basic training means
rather becoming accustomed to cleanliness, order and clarity. The outside pictures on the
barracks show that they are not forced training institutions, but “homes for the groups.”
Picture 9: Here the civilian becomes a soldier.
Civilian clothing is laid aside, and the young man receives clothing that indicates
externally that he is a soldier. To keep the gray coat and all pieces of the uniform in
perfect condition is one of the duties that separates the German soldier from all others.
Picture 10: Bed “building” must be learned.
For soldiers the bed is not “made” but “built.” It must be tight and straight like the man
for whom everything must be that belongs to him. There is also the painful…
Picture 11: Order in the lockers
is not a harassment invention of Prussian non-commissioned officers, but a reflection of
whether the recruit has learned to keep order and discipline, from the button of his coat to
the perfect obeying of commands.
Picture 12. “I swear…”
The oath of allegiance is the obligation of one’s conscience that obligates the soldier like
no other divine or human commandment. The celebratory form of acceptance makes him
aware of the fact that he has entered under a new law. His life belongs to the German
people and the Leader.
Picture 13: “…that I will provide unconditional obedience to the Leader of the German
Reich, Adolf Hitler, the supreme commander of the armed forces, and I will be prepared
at all times to sacrifice my life for this oath.”
Picture 14: Basic training is the same for all soldiers.
The training begins. Every movement, every step, every greeting, every turn is practiced
in great detail. If a parade of German soldiers becomes a demonstration of their posture
and of their mentality, then practicing is nothing else but a school, without which no one
can be a complete soldier.
Picture 15. Even lying down is practiced.
“Drill” does not extend to superficialities; every grasp of a weapon or a movement in the
field that might become necessary must be practiced. Only through this standardization
in training can the deployment of an entire group be achieved.
Picture 16. The hand grenade is the most important weapon in close combat.
The hand grenade and its effects, the knowledge of its operation and the practice of its
proper and calculated throwing of it—all that must be learned.
Picture 17: Every bush and ditch serves as camouflage.
The art of modern warfare requires that the solder must be capable of finding solutions
alone and at any time. No longer are closed ranks led into combat, but individual actions
of various soldiers must fit together in order to reach the intended goal. Therefore the
soldier must learn to utilize any given situation in order to cope with the orders given to
him.
Picture 18: Every solder is a sharp shooter!
To be able to shoot and to be able to shoot accurately is the honor of a soldier. Therefore
there is a special designation: the marksman’s cord.
Picture 19: Sport relaxes and steels--In order to be up to the strenuous training in peace and in war, the recruit must exercise
his body, make it lithe, agile and tough. That is the goal of soldiers’ sports. Contact
sports serve as education in attack and quick decision-making.
Picture 20. ---- ---- and makes one extremely hungry.
The work is strenuous, the bread and nourishment are coarse—but both are healthy.
When one is hungry, the palate quickly loses its sensitivity after a few hours of work.
Picture 21. After hours in nicely appointed rooms.
Free time for the soldier is not intended to be too short. Whoever seeks relaxation with
friends or in a good book, can find it in the plain and bright rooms of the new barracks;
he can also enrich himself in mental pursuits.
Picture 22. There are various requirements that our modern army places on our
soldiers.
Pictures 23-29. In the following, pictures of individual branches of the service are
shown, without any claim of being all-inclusive. It must be indicated, however, that
service in the army does not consist solely of infantry-like marching. Since youth are
especially interested in the air force and navy, the variety of opportunities in the army
must be stressed. Factual explanations about the individual pictures would exceed the
intent of the picture book.
Picture 30. “Soldierly leadership is based on joy of taking responsibility, superior
ability and untiring care.”
From the “Regulations for the German Soldier” of Field Marshal von Hindenburg.
Picture 31. The teacher and educator of the recruits.
The non-commissioned officer is not the proverbial fear of the barracks. For the young
recruit he is the teacher and educator, the master of weapons, and he must have the
ambition to make outstanding soldiers of his men. The non-commissioned officer is and
wants to be a comrade.
Picture 32. “The mother of the company.”
He is the man who is responsible for the functioning of the entire unit. The duty of
“untiring care” rests on him, whether it is the maintaining of punctuality, rationing,
vacation or advancement. His thick book is really “the book of life” of the company.
Picture 33. “They can imitate us Prussians in everything, but not the lieutenant.”
Bismarck.
The German officer corps is the embodiment of the complete soldier. No other land has
developed a similar type like that of the German officer. Greatest sense of duty toward
himself, pride of responsibility, military knowledge and soldierly ability make him the
most suited leader.
Picture 34. “We want to develop a hard race that is strong, dependable, faithful,
obedient and respectable.”
The Leader.
With these words the Leader outlines the ethos and educational goal of a genuine,
resolute military tradition.
Picture 35. The highest award for a soldier is the iron cross.
The award that soldiers and officers receive for bravery in front of the enemy in proving
oneself in danger is plain and impressive. The Leader renewed the foundation of this
award in the first days of the Poland war, and today many younger and older soldiers
wear it on their chests.
Picture 36. The first soldier of the Reich and supreme commander of the armed
forces.
The Leader is the supreme commander of the armed forces. Every soldier swears an oath
to him. He is the model.
He is the announcer of the world war, the creator of the new armed forces in Germany,
the famous liberator of Austria, the Sudetenland, the Memel area, Danzig and the east; he
is the first soldier and best comrade of his soldiers in Poland and everywhere: that is
Adolf Hitler.
Picture 37. “We all serve, not just for thanks, but it must be: these thanks serve that
which is the highest in us—in our folk and in our German Reich.”
The Leader.