The Young German Order (in German Jungdeutscher Orden, often abbreviated as Jungdo) was a large para-military organisation in Weimar Germany. Its name and symbol (see picture) were inspired by the Teutonic Knights (Deutscher Orden in German).
The pseudo-chivalric group was involved in nationalistic German politics. Its youth organisation was called Jungdeutsche Jugend (Young German Youth). Jungdo's political arm, the Volksnationale Reichsvereinigung (People's National Reich Association) merged with the German Democratic Party and parts of the Christian Social People's Service in 1930 to become the German State Party.
The group was founded by Artur Mahraun in May 1920 in Kassel. The organisation tried to revive ideals of pre-war Wandervogel youth movement. Very soon it reached 70,000 members, was temporarily banned in early 1921 and, temporarily being the largest of the many para-military groups in the 1920s, later expanded to almost 300,000 members. In 1933 it was banned by the Nazi rulers.
Famous quotes containing the words young, german and/or order:
“The young men float on their backs, their white bellies bulge to
the sun, they do not ask who seizes fast to them,
They do not know who puffs and declines with pendant and bending arch,
They do not think whom they souse with spray.”
—Walt Whitman (1819–1892)
“The German mind, may it live! Almost invisible as a mind, it finally manifests itself assertively as a conviction.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)
“Until the end of the Middle Ages, and in many cases afterwards too, in order to obtain initiation in a trade of any sort whatever—whether that of courtier, soldier, administrator, merchant or workman—a boy did not amass the knowledge necessary to ply that trade before entering it, but threw himself into it; he then acquired the necessary knowledge.”
—Philippe Ariés (20th century)