Hitler Youth Uniforms: Unidentified DJ Boy

Figure 1.--This boy looks to be about 10 years old. He looks to have just joined the DJ. He does not yet have any badges on his shirt. The most recognizable feature of the Hitler Youth uniform was the brown shirt based on the brown shirts worn by the SA. Note the epaulettes on his shirt. Image coutesy of the PH collection.

This boy looks to be about 10 years old (figure 1). He looks to have just joined the Deutsche Jungvolk (DJ). He does not yet have any badges on his shirt. The most recognizable feature of the Hitler Youth uniform was the brown shirt based on the brown shirts worn by the SA. Note the epaulettes on his shirt. Note the cap here . For some reason it is a somewhat different color that the shirt, but we believe that both are brown. The HBU reader who contributed this image writes, "This is apparently a pre-war image as it is marked '4 North Grove Highgate' on the back (being an area in North London). I would suspect this to be one of the mid-1930s exchange trips to the United Kingdom and the host family took a photo of this boy. There is some writing below it but it is completely illegible. It is interesting to see although he is a DJ, he has shoulderboards on both sides. I know most DJs didn't, and the DJ shirt I own only has it on the left." HBU has noted scattered reports of HJ boys visiting England as part of exchanges. The little we know about these exchanges, however, was that they wetre nmortmally teenagers who had been in the HJ for a few years. this boy looks to have just joined. Is it possible that he was the son of a diplomat?