LAH232
King & Country
A junior RAD leader carrying one of the RAD’s own colourful flags.
If any collector has seen Leni Riefenstahl’s epic documentary film “TRIUMPH OF THE WILL” they will remember the carefully staged scenes of the “Reichsarbeitsdienst” (RAD) Reich Labour Service on parade in the middle of the film. One of the ways the Nazis helped solve Germany’s huge unemployment problem was to ‘draft’ young men into huge construction and public works battalions to build roads, dams, bridges, buildings and other structures that would serve the state and public alike. Men would serve between 6 months and 2 years doing this kind of work within a highly regimented and organized units spread the length and breadth of the country, all under the control and auspices of the Nazi Party. After completing their stint in the RAD they were often then inducted into military service.
With the Nazi love for uniforms of all kinds, the RAD had their own unique style of dress and headgear with ceremonial, highly-polished spades and shovels replacing rifles and machine guns!