Von den britischen Inseln schwappt gerade eine Diskussion über Verbindungen der Pfadfinder zur Hitlerjugend vor 1940 rüber. Stein des Anstoßes sind die am 8. März veröffentlichten Dokumente des britische Inlandsgeheimdienst MI5 mit den Katalognummer KV/5/85:1, KV/5/85:2 und KV/5/87.

In vielen Medien werden daraus Beziehungen zwischen der Hitler Jugend (HJ) und führenden Nazis (sogar Adolf Hitler persönlich) zur Pfadfinderbewegung und ihrem Gründer Sir Robert Baden Powell gezogen.

Die Weltpfadfinderorganisation WOSM (World Organization of the Scout Movement) weist die Medienberichte zurück. Richtig ist, es gab Kontakte und Begegnungen, die von der HJ ausgingen. Falsch ist, dass die Pfadfinderbewegung mit der HJ koopieren wollte und genauso falsch ist ein Treffen zwischen Baden Powell und Hitler.

Große Teile der deutschen Jugendbewegung und auch der Pfadfinder wurden ab 1933 verboten, verhaftet und verfolgt. Das wußten auch die Pfadfinder in Großbritannien, eine Kooperation mit den Nazis (speziell der HJ) kam also nicht in Frage. Eine offene Ablehnung der Nazis und der HJ durch die Pfadfinderbewegung hätte wahrscheinlich zu einer größeren Gefährdung deutscher Mitglieder geführt, die teilweise immer noch im Untergrund aktiv waren.

Die Darstellung von WOSM gibt es hier komplett zu lesen.

On the 8th of March, the security service of the United Kingdom submitted to
the National Archives three bundles of declassified documents covering a
period extending from 1937 to 1944. The World Scout Bureau acquired these
documents for examination. These were essentially notes from the police
declaring the coming and going of members of the Hitler Youth in the UK.
Other parts are under the heading of the Nazi youth movement.

1. How Baden-Powell met with representatives of the Hitler Youth
Amongst all of these document pieces is a copy of a letter sent on November
20, 1937 by Baden-Powell to Joachim von Ribbentrop, German ambassador to
London, thanking him for having received him on November 19, to meet Jochen
Benemann and Hartmann Lauterbach, officials of the Hitler Youth. The tone of
this letter is polite and diplomatic. It refers to the mutual feelings that
the British and the Germans can exchange, Baden-Powell writes „I sincerely
hope that we shall be able in the near future to give expression to it
through the youth on both sides, and I will at once consult my headquarters
and see what suggestions they can put forward“.

In one of these bundles of documents is a two-page report that Baden-Powell
(hereafter BP) transmitted to the International Commissioner, where he
states that „both [Lauterbacher] and Benemann are eager to see the Scouts
get into closer touch with the German youth movement. He continued his
report stating that Ribbentrop „sees in the Scout Movement a very powerful
agency“ to help bring together the two youths. To Ribbentrop, and as per the
report by BP, “that the true peace beween the two nations will depend on the
youth being brought up on friendly terms together in forgetfulness of past
differences”. This report carries no instructions from Baden-Powell to go
along the suggestions proposed by Ribbentrop.

2. Baden-Powell did not meet Hitler
In his report, Baden-Powell said that Ribbentrop would like him to go to
Germany to meet Hitler. It is obvious that this meeting never took place. A
week after his meeting with the ambassador, BP left for Africa. He returned
to the UK for a short period in 1938 before returning permanently to Kenya
October 27, 1938, where he died three years later.

3. In 1933 and 1937, World Scouting responds to the prohibition of Scouting
by the Nazis
In January 1933, before the takeover by the Nazi Party, the Hitler Youth had
expressed its hostility to Scouting, claiming that it alone could represent
the youth of Germany. On the 17th of June, 1933, the Großdeutche Bund, a
federation of many youth movements including a dozen Scout Movements was
prohibited. On the 26th of May, 1934, a decree forbade the Reichschaft
deutscher Pfadfinder, another federation of Scout Movements. The decree
stated that the federation „had become a place of refuge for the young
enemies of the new state.“

This solution marked the end of the Hitler Youth’s will to be recognized by
the International Boy Scouts Bureau. Contacts were made during the jamboree
in Hungary (August 1933) between them and the International Bureau, Hitler’s
Youth sent its Chief of Staff Karl Nabersberg. He also went to the
International Bureau in London in 1934, dressed in a Scout Uniform to
negotiate contacts. He also sought to meet with the Scouts of France. But
none of these contacts fell through and the dissolution of the Reichschaft
deutscher Pfadfinder was one of the consequences.

In August, 1933, The World Scout Conference, held in Godöllo (Hungary),
voted the following resolution (15/33), entitled „Political Propaganda“:
„The Congress once again invites attention to the fact that any political
propaganda of any character, direct or indirect, national or international,
must not be permitted in any camp or scout gathering in which
representatives of other nations are invited to participate.”

In 1937, the same World Conference was even more precise when it voted
resolution 15/37 entitled „Patriotism“: “The Conference resolves that the
International Committee be requested to do all that it can to ensure that
Scouting and Rovering in all countries, while fostering true patriotism, are
genuinely kept within the limits of international cooperation and
friendship, irrespective of creed and race, as has always been outlined by
the Chief Scout (Baden-Powell). Thus, any steps to the militarization of
Scouting or the introduction of political aims, which might cause
misunderstanding and thus handicap our work for peace and good will among
nations and individuals should be entirely avoided in our programmes.”

4. Baden-Powell and the leaders of the International Bureau threatened by
the Nazis in 1940
It is interesting to note that the nazis invasion plan for the
United-Kingdom, prepared in 1940 by the SS General Walter Schellenberg,
foresaw the apprehension of about 2800 prominent british citizens, amongst
whom was Lord Baden-Powell and the main leaders of the International Boy
Scouts Bureau.

The invasion plan was accompanied by the document, “Informationsheft Groß
Britannien” a book with information on British society: the administration,
the education system, media, religious groups, political parties, unions,
organizations of migrants , Freemasonry, Jewish organizations, police,
secret services, described under the Nazi perspective.

Part of this Nazi book entitled „The education system” includes two
sub-sections:“public schools“ and “ The International Scout Movement”.
Reading this text, a mixture of nonsense and very accurate information,
makes us wonder. The Nazis believed that since Baden-Powell had been an
intelligence officer in the British army, the Scouts he had created in 1907
had only been for the purpose of espionage for the benefit of England and
commissioners of various international organizations had as their sole
mission to prepare monthly and quarterly reports on the political economic
and social life of their country for the International Scout Bureau. The
portion devoted to Scouting is also an illustration of Nazi racism: Hubert
Martin, Director of the International Bureau is described as „half Jewish“.

All these elements proves the lack of mutual sympathy that was between the
Nazi regime Baden Powell and the Scout Movement. They should encourage
todays Scouts to reflect on their history to better understand the reality
of their mission of peace, and to guard themselves against totalitarian
regimes that have always tried to prohibit or restrict the Movement.