Figure 1.--This is part of the board for the German U-boat game. It was a form of "Snakes and Ladders" based on the exploits of based on the exploits of U-boat commander Gunther Prien.

We are not sure how children's play was affected by the War. We have found some information about board games that were marketed and sold in Germany. We are not sure who mabufactured them. The omes we have found are about the U-boat campaign in the Atlantic and bombing Britain. We think they were produced fairly early in the Wr, in part becuse the Allies won both the Battle of Britain and the Battle of the Atlantic. We doubt the Germans would have produced games about losing campaigns. We know of no games about the campaihn in the East, presumably because it turned into a disaster. These games are quite rare. Very few have survived the War. Given the natire of the games, they were clearly made for children. These games are unlike any thing produced in the Britain and America.

Children's Games

We are not sure how children's play was affected by the War. This is an interesting topic that we hope to persue. We have begun to collect some images, but do not yet have a sufficent number to reach any real conclusions.

Toys

Germany before the NAZIs had one of the ldading toy industries in the world. Steif teddies are particularly knonw. As are several doll makers. We note many girls playing with dolls houuses and boy will electric trains. Toys were also important Germam exports. This changed with the NAZIs. Perhaps the major casualty ws metal toys as more and more of Germany's production of metal was devoted to war-related industries. We are not entirely sure how this affected the availability of toys are to what extent this was noted by the public. German exports declined during the NAZI era. The pre-War NAZI economy with it huge military expenditures was unsustainable. This changed after the War begun because the NAZIs could plunder occupied countries to support its economy. Toys of course are just one example of a lost export industry. We have some idea of the toys German children played with during the War because of the photographic record.

Board Games

A favorite with many children is board games which they can play with their friends. We have found some information about board games that were marketed and sold in Germany. The games surfaced during a 2007 auction in Britain. (NAZI items can not be sold in Germany.) We are not sure who manufactured them. The board are fairly slickly done so it would have been an established company. We have noted quite a few different games with a variety of themes. The ones we have found are about the U-boat campaign in the North Atlantic and bombing Britain. There was another about German paratroopers. The one that especially struck us was the one about bombing English cities. We do not know when the games were manufactured, We think they were produced fairly early in the War, in part because th Allies won both the Battle of Britain and the Battle of the Atlantic. We doubt the Germans would have produced games about losing campaigns. We know of no games about the campaign in the East, presumably because it turned into a disaster. These games are quite rare. We are not sure how popular they were during the War. We suspect that they declined in popularity as the War turned against Germany. We are not sure how popular thesegames were. Very few seem to have have survived the War. But that does not mean that they were not made and purchased in quanyity. Given the nature of the games, they were clearly made for children.

Sources

"Nazi board games under the hammer," BBC News (August 20, 2007).

Created: 4:11 PM 8/21/2007
Last updated: 2:51 AM 5/1/2008