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The military-style peaked cap Schülermütze were still being worn in Germany in the 1930s, at least the early-30s. This suddenly changed after Hitler was appointed Chancellor (January 1933). Interestingly among the many NAZI targets early on was the traditional militry-style school cap. NAZI officials denounced the Schülermütze as an 'egg shell of reaction' (Eierschalen der Reaktion) and a divisive 'well spring of class feeling' (Ausgeburt des Klassendünkels). One German source tells us, "Das Ende der Schülermütze kam dann sehr schnell nach 1933 in der Nazi-Zeit. Die Mütze passte nicht mehr in die Volksgemeinschaft, sie war nun als „elitär“ verrufen. So drängte der Schulleiter darauf, dass sie nicht mehr getragen wurde." (The end of the school cap came very quickly after 1933 in the NAZI period. The cap no longer fit into the new NAZI visision of the national community, it was now labeled 'elitist'. The headmaster urged that it no longer be worn.) This surprising development related to the working-class social orientation of the NAZI Party and Hitler's desire to oursue a social revolution and create a new classless German Volk. The reason that the Schülermütze got tided up in this assault Germany's substantial social class system is that for the most part it was secondary schools that adopted these caps as a kind of school uniform. At the time it was mostly middle-class children that continued their education breyond primary school. Relatively few working-class children attended secondary school. Thus the Schülermütze was a kind of badge of middle class exclusivity. The NAZIs were in essence correct that it was elitist. It was something like the English children attending private schools or being accepted by a grammar school and wearing the school uniform showinhg what school they attended. We are not entirely sure just how quickly the Schülermütze disappeared from German schools. It was not immediately apparent that NAZI diktats carried real weight. And Germany did not have a centralized education system. Education was he province of the states (Landen). Many of our German school portraits are undated. Thus while we see boys wearing these caps in the 1930s, we are not sure just when they were taken and how quickly the caps disappeared from German schools. Germany had one of the finest education systems in the world. The schools, parents, alunmi and the boys were extremly proud of their schools. Normally there would have been considerable resistance to doing away to such a long established and well recognized symbol of their schools. It was, however, very clear by 1934 that the NAZIs were in charge and could not be opposed on any signficant issue. We suspect that by 1935 they were no longer commonly worn, but we can not yet confirm that. An exception may have been Catholic schools because of the Reichskonkordat, but only for a few years.
The military-style peaked cap Schülermütze were still being worn in Germany in the 1930s, at least the early-30s. Our German archive shows that large numbers of German boys were wearing these caps in the early-30s. We think that is a good indivator of prevalence. We not only see secondary-level boys wearing them as part of school set headwear as well as primary boys wearing the caps with no connection to their school. The primary schools did not set a uniform cap. The boys and parents were free to select whatever style they wanted. The Schülermütze was simply seen as a generic school style. This is a little difficult to follow precisely bevause most of our images are undated. We can roughly date them like the snapshot here (figure 1) to the late-20s/early-30s, but not to specific years.
This suddenly changed after Hitler was appointed Chancellor (January 1933). Interestingly among the many NAZI targets early on was the traditional militry-style school cap. NAZI officials denounced the Schülermütze as an 'egg shell of reaction' (Eierschalen der Reaktion) and a divisive 'well spring of class feeling' (Ausgeburt des Klassendünkels). One German source tells us, "Das Ende der Schülermütze kam dann sehr schnell nach 1933 in der Nazi-Zeit. Die Mütze passte nicht mehr in die Volksgemeinschaft, sie war nun als „elitär“ verrufen. So drängte der Schulleiter darauf, dass sie nicht mehr getragen wurde." (The end of the school cap came very quickly after 1933 in the NAZI period. The cap no longer fit into the new NAZI visision of the national community (Volksgemeinschaft), but the venerable Schülermütze was now labeled 'elitist'. The headmaster urged that it no longer be worn.)
This surprising development related to the working-class social orientation of the NAZI Party and Hitler's desire to oursue a social revolution and create a new classless German Volk. The most famous NAZI slogan was, 'Ein Volk, Dein Rich, Ein Führer'. And bu Ein Vok the NAZIs meant one united people without social-class divisions. The NAZIs are often considred to be a conservative force. They are often referred to as a fight-wing group in contrast to the Socialists and Communists on the left. They did indeed receive support from right-wing forces such as important industrialists and royaliss. Some of the Kaiser's family supported Hitler thinking that the NAZIs would restore the monarchy. Other groups like important elements of the middle-class supported him seeing Hitler as a conservative force. We believe that this is a misunderstanding of Hitler and the NAZIs. They were not a conservative force. Hitler was determined to carry out a through revolution in Germany life, one which he had only partly started when the War began. One of the fundamental goals was a thorogh-going social revolution. And this in part explains the devotion and support he eventually achieved. While the Kaiser resigned after the end of World War I, the Weimar Republic did not significantly change German's social structure. Germany was a class-bound country.
The reason that the Schülermütze got tided up in this assault Germany's substantial social class system is that for the most part it was secondary schools that adopted these caps as a kind of school uniform. At the time it was mostly middle-class children that continued their education breyond primary school. Relatively few working-class children attended secondary school. Thus the Schülermütze was a kind of badge of middle class exclusivity. The NAZIs were in essence correct that it was elitist. It was something like the English children attending private schools or being accepted by a grammar school and wearing the school uniform showinhg what school they attended. An article about Willie Bradt describes how the future Socialist Chacellor won a scholarship to attendd an 'elitest' school. He mentions that biographers often use a photograph of the younf Brandt in his Schülermütze. (Er trug die Schülermütze des elitären Lübecker Johanneums, für das er ein Begabtenstipendium hatte ....) [Elitz]
We are not sure how this canpaign begun. There are many references to the NAZI view that these caps were elitest, but very lirrle about who identified the Schülermütze as something to be discouraged. We do not know if Hitler or other top NAZI ordered the change. As far as we know, the campaign began after the NAZI take over. It is likely that the campaign began with the new NAZI Minister of Science, Education and National Culture (Reichsminister für Wissenschaft, Erziehung und Volksbildung), Bernhard Rust. Hitler appointed Rust as the Prussian Minister for Cultural Affairs after becoming Chancellor (1933). Thee next year he appointed Rust to the minidsterial pot he held throughout the NAZI era. It was Rust who inroduced the NAZI 'Heil Hitler' salute to rhe schools. And Rust set about reshaping the German educational system to conform to of National Socialist pribciples. It doing away with the Schülermütze wanot Rust's idea, he surely approved and helped eing about its abolition.
We are not entirely sure just how quickly the Schülermütze disappeared from German schools. It was not immediately apparent that NAZI diktats carried real weight. And Germany did not have a centralized education system. Education was he province of the states (Landen). Many of our German school portraits are undated. Thus while we see boys wearing these caps in the 1930s, we are not sure just when they were taken and how quickly the caps disappeared from German schools. Germany had one of the finest education systems in the world. The schools, parents, alunmi and the boys were extremly proud of their schools. Normally there would have been considerable resistance to doing away to such a long established and well recognized symbol of their schools. It was, however, very clear by 1934 that the NAZIs were in charge and could not be opposed on any signficant issue. One German author describes his school experiences during the NAZI era. He recalls his green Schülermütze was dicontinued in 1934. [Augstein] We suspect that by 1935 they were no longer commonly worn, but we can not yet confirm that. An exception may have been Catholic schools because of the Reichskonkordat, but only for a few years. Some of the Catholic images we have found could easily be dated to the mid-30s.
A German reader provides an assessment of the Schülermütze, "I think the directors of the schools - as
long they were not replaced by NAZI Party members - probably wanted to maintain the Schülermütze tradition. Parof the traditin was the idea that 'My school is the best one of the town and my pupils clearly distinguish from those of other schools by the caps will behave well and respectfully. Two matters to keep in mind. First, Hitler and many of his followers didn't attend a secondary school, especially one with high standards. Second, Jews tended to be well educatefd and out of proprtion to their percentge of the population did attend these schools. In my famoly, grandfather came from a craftsmen family. There were two sisters and a younger brother. His grandparents payed the school fee for him. He was the eldest grandson. He worked as a civil servant and later received a stipendium to
study at an university. My grandmother was an offspring of a civil servant family. Her father's professional work was highly respected appreciated and he became personally ennobled. She ttended a girl's higher school. The two brothers of my mother went to tertiar schools/gymnasia (selective secondary schools). The fees were payed by the family; both earned university degrees, enginnering and law. Again fees payed by their parents. My mother also attended a girl's higher school and earned the abitur degree. My father was an offspring of a craftsmen family, he attended a similar high-level school and studied medicine. All were Christians. The level of my parents, all children attended higher school between 1910 and 1930. I know that they had Schülermützen. Hns has provided a fascinating account of his childhood. Hans grewup during the NAZI era, but ny the time he began school, the Schülermütze was no longer being worn.
Augstein, Franziska. "Meine Schuljahre im 'Dritten Reich'," Rhein-Gymnasium.
Elitz, Ernst. Ein Leben voller Anfänge
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