Figure 1.-- This is a class photo taken at the Gymnasium in Esslingen am Neckar (Baden-Württemberg) in 1949. It is a Gymnasium 1st grade class, meaning the fifth year of school in the German school system. This would mean that the boys were about 10-years old and had just finished Volkshule. Gymnasium was a selective secondary school, rather like a British grammar school. This is Klasse 1C. We are not sure if the various classes (1A, 1B, 1C, ect.) were organized by ability.

This is a class photo taken at the Gymnasium in Esslingen am Neckar (Baden-Württemberg). Esslingen is a small city near Stuttgart located on the Neckar River. The surrounding regions also mostly developed around Esslingen. The class portrait here was taken in 1949. It is a Gymnasium 1st grade class, meaning the fifth year of school in the German school system. This would mean that the boys were about 10-years old and had just finished Volkshule. Gymnasium was a selective secondary school, rather like a British grammar school. Before World War II, many German children did not attend secondary school. Most working-class did not go on the secondary school. This changed after the War when the secondary system was significantky expanded. We are not entirely sure when the changes were implemented and what the status of the educational reforms were in 1949. The boys are wearing a variety of garments, formal and casual. Two boys wear very formal jackets, while five of their mates are wearing only undershirts. We commonly see German boys wearing a variety of clothes, but we have not noticed wearing singlets to school before. Perhaps it was a hiot day. Or perhaps this was a reflection of the still difficult post-War conditions. Another possibility is working-class children beginning to attend Gymnasium.

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Created: 8:12 PM 5/1/2011
Last updated: 8:12 PM 5/1/2011