Blut und Ehre
Blut und Ehre (English: "Blood and Honor") was a slogan used by the Hitler Youth, among others.
Use under Hitler
[edit]The terms "Blood and Honor" were constitutive concepts of the "Nordic-German Racial Spirit" to Alfred Rosenberg, who developed them in his work The Myth of the 20th Century, published in 1930.[1] Through Rosenberg's Myth, these terms entered the development of the Hitler Youth.[2] Four of the collected essays of Rosenberg published between 1936 and 1941 dealt with this concept.
The slogan was widely identified with the Hitler Youth. It was the title of a songbook, was embossed in the belt buckle of the Hitler Youth uniform and between 1933 and 1938 was engraved on the blade of the Hitler Youth's hiking knife.
Use today
[edit]In Germany, the use of this slogan in German is legally considered to be a use of a symbol of an unconstitutional organization, and is subject to legal penalty.[3] According to a judgement of the Federal Court of Justice in 2009, the use of the English translation "Blood and Honour" is not subject to legal penalty.[4][5]
The motto has been used in translation by several different neo-Nazi organisations. Blood and Honour is an international network of neo-Nazi musical groups. The motto has also been used, in modified form, by followers of Golden Dawn party in Greece.[6]
References
[edit]- ↑ Heinz Schreckenberg: Erziehung, Lebenswelt und Kriegseinsatz der deutschen Jugend unter Adolf Hitler. LIT, Münster 2001. ISBN 3-8258-4433-1. pg. 20
- ↑ Heinz Schreckenberg: Erziehung, Lebenswelt und Kriegseinsatz der deutschen Jugend unter Adolf Hitler. LIT, Münster 2001. ISBN 3-8258-4433-1. pg. 213
- ↑ Roman Trips-Hebert: Das strafbare Verwenden von Kennzeichen verfassungswidriger Organisationen - § 86a StGB im Spiegel der Rechtsprechung Archived 2011-01-25 at the Wayback Machine. Berlin 2009.
- ↑ faz.net 13. August 2009: Nazi-Parolen in fremder Sprache nicht strafbar
- ↑ BGHSt 54, S. 61–69.
- ↑ Baboulias, Yiannis (4 September 2012). "Greece's Golden Dawn isn't a political party – it's more like a criminal gang". The Guardian (Opinion). Retrieved 29 June 2026.