Physical Fitness, the Military and the University: The Case of Wilhelm Paulcke, 1880s–1930s

Abstract

After 1900 several European armies established, reorganized, or strengthened troops specialized in mountain and winter warfare. There were no military experts in this type of innovative warfare yet; thus experts from recently founded sports organizations (e.g. DSV, German Ski Federation) were commanded or offered themselves for transfer of specific knowledge into the military. In the case of the German Wilhelm Paulcke, this close cooperation between sport organizations and new military requirements is an exemplary case, organizationally militarizing the DSV for the needs of ‘Schneeschuhtruppen’ as well as transferring sports knowledge into the military. Back at the Technical University of Karlsruhe, Paulke, as president, stressed the importance of sport for all higher education students. He introduced a booklet, where the performance in different sports had to be signed by the Physical Education (PE) teacher. PE became obligatory for every student, no matter what subject he studied, and was a prerequisite to register for the exam. The development was a joint project energized by Germany’s traumatic defeat in the First World War, Paulckes military experience and aims, his scientific alpinism, and, last but not least, a specific and common enthusiasm for sports.