Die Fahrenden Gesellen: Junge Angestellte zwischen Gewerkschaft und Jugendbewegung (1909–1933) / The Traveling Journeymen: Young Employees Between Trade Union and Youth Movement

This study examines the development of the "Traveling Journeymen" within the German National Association of Commercial Employees (DHV). The organization was founded in the style of the Wandervogel movement. The "Traveling Journeymen" exhibited several distinctive characteristics. Their members were predominantly recruited from white-collar and blue-collar families, thus differentiating the organization from the otherwise bourgeois, youth-oriented groups. The members' leisure activities focused primarily on hiking and singing, with practical recreation and camaraderie taking center stage. During the Weimar Republic, the "Traveling Journeymen" exerted a significant influence on the DHV's apprenticeship section, while they themselves were hardly active in political discourse. Their ideological pronouncements were vague and often characterized by nationalism. A clearly defined ideological line and a stance on important political or social issues were not discernible. The study examines the socio-demographic background of the members and includes a directory of over 2,000 officials who can be identified in the sources studied.