Hitler Youth Accessories: Belt Buckle

Figure 1.--This Deutcher Jungvolk belt buckle was a single lighting bolt, the styalized runic "S" meaninf "Sieg" or voctory. There were two different designs, bith quite similar.

The Hitler Youth had two different belt buckles, both silver-colored steel belt buckle. The younger DJ boys wore a belt buckle with a simple runic lighting bolt symbol. There were two designs, both very similar. The older HJ boys wore a shield device. It was an eagle with wings spread over a diamond containing a swastica and surounded by the HJ moto. There were two designs. The forst was an early design, the second was more common. There was also a buckle with the NAZI flag, but I do not think that it was acommonly worn. There was also a different belt buckle for youth leaders.

Designs

Hitler Youth boys wore a special silver-colored steel belt buckle. There were two different belts worn by the boys. One was for the DJ boys (10-13 years) and the other was for the HJ boys (14-18 years).

Deutcher Jungfolk

The Dj boys wore the single lightening bolt runic character. This was the symbol of the HJ. We havde noted some older boys wearing this style as wellm but perhaps they had not yet ahd the cahbce of getting their new belt buckles. We note two diiferent, but very similar styles.

Hitler Jugend

The older HJ boys wore a belt buckle woth a shield device. It is an eagle with wings spread over a diamond containing a swastica. The motto, "Blut und Ehre" appears on the circle. There was an earlier different design, but the one shown here (figure 2) was the most common. The motto meams "Blood and Honor". Unfirtunatelly Hitler brough these boys in World War II a great deal of blood, but little honor. We have noted an earlier design, but this was the most common. A varant was a red, white, black German swastica flag, but we have not noted actual photographs of boys wearing this style of buckle.

Leaders belt buckle

HJ leaders had a special buckle. It was gold colored and had a swastica surrounded byblairels.

Chronology

I'm not sure when te belt buckle shown here with eagle perched on a swastica within a diamond was adopted. I believe it was after the NAZIs seized power in 1933. I am also not sire when thge varios design changeswere made.

Figure 2.--This Hitler Youth belt buckle had an eagle perched on a diamond swastica. The motto, "Blut und Ehre" (Blood and Honor) appears on the circle. We have noted an earlier design, but this was the most common.

Prevalence

I'm not sure how prevalent the belt buckles were. Did all the boys wear them. They were probably not common when the NAZIs first took over the German youth movement and then became increasingly common. I'm not sure, however, if every Hitler Youth unit had their boys completely outfitted with the regulation belt buckles.

Ceremony

I'm also not sure if there was any ceremony when a boy first received his buckle. Presumably this was when he was inducted into the Hitler Youth. A HBC reader writes, "The big achievement, with a little ceremony attached, was receiving the dagger. This had to be worked for."

Images

HBU's intention is to eventually add some photographs here of Hitler Youth boys actually wearing their belt buckles.

Collectors Items

The belt bickles one existed in the millions, but have become popular collector's items. A German reader tells us, "We destroyed all this stuff at the end of the war out of fear that there might be some kind of revenge from either the allied troops or displaced persons who were of course extremely bitter and revengeful toward all Germans regardless of their involvement in war crimes and other attricities."