Life in the Program

Photo of one of the many Lebensborn Program Homes. Photo from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

The homes

After the start of WWII, the Lebensborn Program was expanded to the German occupied European countries. The program eventually had facilities in Germany, Austria, Poland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, and France. The program's homes were located in former facilities for elderly and disabled people, as well as houses that were taken from Jewish families. These maternity homes offered a safe environment for women who were encouraged to bear children with SS officers or other racially approved men. These communal homes were supposed to provide support while the mothers healed after giving birth.

Propaganda

While the Lebensborn program was open, there were many A.D companies hoping to draw in mothers. One of the many companies for this program was the brochure seen to the right. According to the translation from the website Experiencing History, the brochure goes over what life would be like for the women and their expectations. In the brochure they show the beautiful communal homes that the women would be living in together. They show what the living space and dining rooms looked like and stated all of the benefits that would come with being in this program. As stated by Experiencing History, the program would take in women who were thinking of aborting their Aryan children and say that the mothers could leave after the child turns a certain age. Also within this brochure is an explanation of how the women were accepted. Wives of the SS soldiers would automatically be accepted but women that were married outside of government would have to show proof that they were Aryan along with the soon to be grandparents. This once again shows that the Nazi party had complete control of what was happening in the program and wanted to make sure that the Aryan continued to stay "pure".

Images from brochure advertising the Lebensborn program to women created by the Nazi party. Provided by Experiencing History.

Photo of women learning how to change an infants diaper at a special school for teaching, cooking, and childcare to the wives of German political leaders in Berlin. Photo from the Unitetd States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Images of the letter from the grandmother of Peter Koch to SS Doctor Gregor Ebner regarding the baby's health and the mother's health. Provided by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Women

There were many incentives for women to bear many children. Women who had three or more children under the age of ten got what were called "honorary cards" which allowed them to get discounts on rent and cut shopping lines. There were also what was called the "Mothers Cross medal", having four children would get you bronze, six for silver, and eight for gold. Throughout the women's stay doctors would check up on the well being of the babies and the mother's health. An example of this was a letter from a grandmother coming to check in on her daughter and newly born grandson. On June 13, 1941 Anneliese Koch's mother wrote a letter regarding Peter Koch, Anneliese Koch's son. In the letter her mother discusses her concerns with her daughter being in the Psychiatric Hospital in Vienna. She goes on to say that her daughter had been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Just like many letters set in the program, one of the SS soldiers made sure that they read the letter before sending it out. It was here where the soldier suggested that Peter Koch would be given to a different mother in the program and for Anneliese Koch to be sterilized, meaning Anneliese forcibly getting her tubes tied or her uterus removed entirely. This letter shows that the Nazi party did not want any chance of the Aryan race being "imperfect". They wanted to make sure that every child that was born in that program was perfect and would be able to carry the next German population.

the Children

It's important to know that the Lebensborn program was a horrific part of Nazi history. These pictures were meant to deceive people into thinking the program was something it wasn't. Propaganda photos depicted the Lebensborn program and made it seem nurturing and caring, hiding the program's true, sinister goals. The children born in these homes were expected to embody the ideal Aryan characteristics, and many were later adopted by German families or sent to other Lebensborn facilities for further Germanization. These homes, though presented as supportive, were also tools for furthering Nazi racial policies and promoting their visions of a superior race. While these children are growing up and are at the ages were morals start to be learned, the Nazis are normalizing their ways and teachings. The children were constantly being monitored by the SS soldiers and doctors provided to make sure that they are perfect.

Propaganda photo of children enjoying a meal. Photo from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Teddy bear used in an SS Lebensborn home. Photo from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Propaganda photo of toddlers in a Lebensborn home. Photo from History Collection.

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