German Rest Cures: Erholungskur


Figure 1.--Here we see German girls doing a rest cure in 1939. They look very healthy. I'm not sure what they needed a rest or cure from. All of the girls wear pinafores.

A sanitorium is a kind of hospital or residential treatment facility for people with chronic illnesses, especially tuberculosis. These facilities can be both state run and private facilities. Some were specificially for children. The French film "Murmer of the Heart" has scenes from such a facility. Similar facilities were known as rest homes. These were commonly facilities for the aged, but there were some for children as well. A German reader tells us about children doing rest cures. We are not yet sure what this was about. We do not know if these facilities were sanitoriums or different kind of facilities. Nor do we know wht conditions they addresses. We also do not kow who operated them. The photograph here shows a group of girls with a nurse in 1939 (figure 1). The German term was Erholungskur. Note all the girls are wearing pinafores. We do not knowif there were separate facilities for boys and girls or if the children were just kept separate in the same facilities. A German reader tells us that this was not a sanitorium. She writes, "I think in this case it was more something like a holiday home to provide some recreation in the woods for school children living in cities with lots of industry." This sounds more like a summer camp. The idea behind the American summer camp movement was to get city kids out into the country for fresh air and sunshine. The German program, however, seems different. The nurse here seems caring and competent, but she doesn't seem the type to lead summer camp type activities. And Germany in the 1930s had a major summer camp program operated by the Hitler Youth organization for older children. Thus we are not sure about the activities at the facility here.

Sanitoriums

A sanitorium is a kind of hospital or residential treatment facility for people with chronic illnesses, especially tuberculosis. These facilities can be both state run and private facilities. Some were specificially for children. Most Europen countries had such facilities. The French film "Murmer of the Heart" has scenes from such a facility. Durung the Third Reich sanotoriums or sanitorium-like facilities were used as part of the T4 euthenasia program. This was part of the overall NAZI eugenics program. One of the targets was handicapped children. These were not Jewish children, but Aryan children that thad mental phyical handicapped. The program did not include to my knowledge children sick with infectous diseases, but was limited to the handicapped. A great niece of the Führer was one of the individuals euthenized at these facilities.

Rest Homes

Similar facilities were known as rest homes. These were commonly facilities for the aged, but there were apparently some for children as well.

Rest Cures: Erholungskur

A German reader tells us about children doing rest cures. We do not know much about this program and when it was initiated. We are not yet sure what this was about. We do not know if these facilities were sanitoriums or different kind of facilities. Nor do we know wht conditions they addresses. We also do not kow who operated them. The photograph here shows a group of girls with a nurse in 1939 (figure 1). The German term was Erholungskur. Note all the girls are wearing pinafores. We do not know if there were separate facilities for boys and girls or if the children were just kept separate in the same facilities. A German reader tells us that this was not a sanitorium. She writes, "I think in this case it was more something like a holiday home to provide some recreation in the woods for school children living in cities with lots of industry." This sounds more like a summer camp. The idea behind the American summer camp movement was to get city kids out into the country for fresh air and sunshine. The German program, however, seems different. The nurse here seems caring and competent, but she doesn't seem the type to lead summer camp type activities. Thus we are not sure about the activities at the facility here.

Summer Camps

And Germany in the 1930s had a major summer camp program operated by the Hitler Youth organization for older children. Germany had many summer camps before the NAZIs seized power. Once in power, the Hitler Youth orgnization befgan incorporating some groups and seizing the property of other groups.






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Created: 1:54 AM 1/13/2006
Last update: 5:48 AM 1/13/2006