37-460: Forget-me-not refers to any member of the flowering plant genus Myosotis , particularly: Forget me not may also refer to: Episodes Forget-me-not Myosotis ( / ˌ m aɪ ə ˈ s oʊ t ɪ s / MY -ə- SOH -tiss ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Boraginaceae . The name comes from the Ancient Greek μυοσωτίς "mouse's ear", which the foliage
74-526: A social welfare organisation whose declared purpose was "to develop and promote the living, healthy forces of the German people". The NSV's origins can be traced to Nazi party welfare activities during the Kampfzeit , when local groups were formed to provide aid to party members in distress. The Berlin association "Nationalsozialistische Volkswohlfahrt e.V." is considered the primary institutional ancestor of
111-674: A Masonic emblem at the annual convention in Bremen , Germany . In 1938, a forget-me-not badge—made by the same factory as the Masonic badge—was chosen for the annual Nazi Party Winterhilfswerk , the annual charity drive of the National Socialist People's Welfare , the welfare branch of the Nazi party. This coincidence enabled Freemasons to wear the forget-me-not badge as a secret sign of membership. After World War II ,
148-639: A backdrop of acute distress in large parts of the German populace; its initiation was partly a result of the party's desire to prevent social unrest. The "Law on the Winterhilfswerk of the German People", passed on 1 December 1936, formally established the WHW as a registered association, to be led by the Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda . The yearly donation drives by
185-432: A civil servant was prosecuted for failure to donate, and his argument that it was voluntary was dismissed on the grounds it was an extreme view of liberty to neglect all duties that were not actually prescribed by law and therefore an abuse of liberty. It was not unheard of for workers to lose their jobs for not donating to Winterhilfe or not giving enough. For instance, when a worker was fired for not donating to Winterhilfe,
222-478: A group of exiled German economists writing under the pseudonym 'Germanicus' produced figures comparing the Winterhilfswerk of 1933 with the pre-existing Reich Winter Help of 1931. The figures showed that the Winterhilfswerk provided slightly more coal and potatoes to the needy, but dramatically less bread and meat. They also pointed out that the Reich Winter Help was supplemented by the relief efforts of
259-478: A major component of Germany's welfare state. Donations to the WHW, which were voluntary in name but de facto required of German citizens, supplanted tax-funded welfare institutions and freed up money for rearmament. Furthermore, it had the propagandistic role of publicly staging the solidarity of the Volksgemeinschaft . The Winterhilfswerk was organised by the National Socialist People's Welfare ,
296-599: A reporter for the North American Newspaper Alliance , Lothrop Stoddard wrote: Once a fortnight, every city, town, and village in the Reich seethes with brown-shirted Storm Troopers carrying red-painted canisters. These are the Winter-Help collection-boxes. The Brown-Shirts go everywhere. You cannot sit in a restaurant or beer-hall but what, sooner or later, a pair of them will work through
333-481: Is Myosotis scorpioides . Myosotis species are annual or perennial , herbaceous, flowering plants with penta merous actinomorphic flowers with five sepals and petals. Flowers are typically 1 cm (½") in diameter or less, flatly faced, coloured typically blue, but sometimes pink, white or yellow with yellow centres and borne on scorpioid cymes . Their foliage is alternate, and their roots are generally diffuse. They typically flower in spring or soon after
370-503: Is a German legend set as an origin story behind the name "Forget-Me-Not". In the legend, a knight was walking with his lady near the Danube River and decided to pick blue flowers for her. While picking the flowers he fell in the river and was swept away. He tossed the flowers to his lady and his last words to her were "Forget-me-not!". Winterhilfswerk The Winterhilfswerk des Deutschen Volkes ( English : Winter Relief of
407-488: Is thought to resemble. In the Northern Hemisphere, they are colloquially known as forget-me-nots or scorpion grasses . Myosotis alpestris is the official flower of Alaska and Dalsland , Sweden. Plants of the genus are not to be confused with Chatham Islands ' forget-me-nots, which belong to the related genus Myosotidium . The genus was originally described by Carl Linnaeus . The type species
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#1732775837763444-622: Is used to commemorate those from the province who were killed in the First World War, and worn around July 1. It is also used in Germany to commemorate the fallen soldiers of the world wars in a similar manner to the use of remembrance poppies in the UK. The flower is also the symbol for the Armenian genocide's 100th anniversary . The design of the flower is a black dot symbolising
481-561: The larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the setaceous Hebrew character . Many of the species in New Zealand are threatened. Of more than 510 recorded species names, only 156 species are presently accepted, listed below. The remainder are either synonyms or hybrids of presently accepted or proposed names. The small, blue forget-me-not flower was first used by the Grand Lodge Zur Sonne , in 1926, as
518-471: The states and private organisations, but this help had ceased under the Nazis. American racialist author Lothrop Stoddard , who visited Nazi Germany in 1939, described visits to a Winterhilfswerk facility where he was shown winter clothing and other items meant for distribution. Others describe the charitable aims of the Winterhilfswerk and details on the collection of money and goods, but little about what
555-575: The "woodland" forget-me-not, have been introduced into most of the temperate regions of Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Genetic analysis indicates that the genus originated in the Northern Hemisphere, and that species native to New Zealand, Australia, New Guinea, and South America form a lineage of closely related species that are likely derived from a single dispersal event to the Southern Hemisphere. Myosotis species are food for
592-524: The German People ), commonly known by its abbreviated form Winterhilfswerk ( WHW ), was an annual donation drive by the National Socialist People's Welfare ( German : Nationalsozialistische Volkswohlfahrt ) to help finance charitable work. Initially an emergency measure to support people during the Great Depression, it went on to become a major source of funding for the activities of the NSV and
629-471: The NSV. Initially, the Berlin organisation was met with contempt by Nazi Party leaders: In 1932 the party informed the association's leadership that it had initiated legal proceedings because of "misuse of the word 'national socialist'". In 1933, the party changed its position; Hitler designated the NSV a party organ on 3 May 1933. It went on to grow rapidly, counting 3.7 million members in 1934 and becoming
666-470: The Nazi Party sally forth with their collection-boxes to do their bit. The 1933–1945 collection drives issued a large number of themed ceramic medallions and other badges given to donators. A 1938 Nazi propaganda leaflet claimed that the Winterhilfswerk had collected nearly a billion Reichsmarks from 1933 to 1937 as well as half a billion in goods and two million kilograms of coal. However, in 1937
703-463: The Winterhilfswerk constituted the most visible part of the NSV's work. As part of the centralisation of Nazi Germany , posters urged people to donate, rather than give directly to beggars. The Hitlerjugend and Bund Deutscher Mädel (boys' and girls' associations, respectively) were extremely active in collecting for this charity. As part of the effort to place the community over the individual, totals were not reported for any individuals, only what
740-404: The branch raised. Certain weekends were assigned to all of the different Nazi associations, each with their own special Abzeichen, or badges, to pass out in exchange for a pfennig or two. The highly collectible items were made of many different materials, such as wood, glass, paper, terra cotta, metal and plastic. Over 8,000 different pieces had been produced by the end of the war, and some of
777-516: The close of which the Brown-Shirts collect. People buy tiny badges to show they have contributed—badges good only for that particular campaign. One time they may be an artificial flower; next time a miniature dagger, and so forth. The Winter-Help campaign series reaches its climax shortly before Christmas in the so-called Day of National Solidarity. On that notable occasion the Big Guns of
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#1732775837763814-599: The commemoration of the January events of 1991. In the Netherlands, the forget-me-not has become a symbol for Alzheimer Nederland, a foundation advocating for people suffering from dementia . In New Zealand, the forget-me-not is the symbol for Alzheimers New Zealand, the foundation advocating for people suffering from Alzheimer's disease and dementia. In the United Kingdom, many health settings make use of
851-475: The firing was upheld by a labour court on the grounds that it was "conduct hostile to the community of the people [...] to be most strongly condemned". Large donations were also a means to establish oneself as a loyal supporter of the Nazi Party without the commitment of joining it. A greatly encouraged practice was once a month to have a one-pot meal ( eintopf ), reducing all the food to one course and
888-554: The forget-me-not as a symbol to highlight that someone has dementia; it may be placed on notes, bedsides or patient boards. Also in the United Kingdom, the forget-me-not is the symbol of the Alzheimer's Society . In the history of art, the forget-me-not is used to remember loved ones who have died, and so is very common in funerary portraits. Since the Medieval period it has become a symbol of everlasting love and devotion. There
925-476: The forget-me-not flower was used again as a Masonic emblem in 1948 at the first Annual Convention of the United Grand Lodges of Germany . The badge is now worn in the coat lapel by Freemasons around the world to remember all who suffered in the name of Freemasonry, especially those during the Nazi era. The flower is also used as a symbol of remembrance by the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. It
962-447: The melting of snow in alpine ecosystems. The seeds are contained in small, tulip-shaped pods along the stem to the flower. The pods attach to clothing when brushed against and eventually fall off, leaving the small seed within the pod to germinate elsewhere. Seeds can be collected by placing a sheet of paper under stems and shaking the seed pods onto the paper. Myosotis scorpioides is colloquially called scorpion grass because of
999-463: The money thus saved was to be donated. During autumn and winter months from 1933 onward, the Eintopfsonntag (One-Pot Sunday or Stew Sunday) was officially scheduled by the WHW. Restaurants were required to offer an eintopf meal at one of several price points. Households were reminded of the occasion, although it has been noted that the authorities did not investigate whether the one-pot meal
1036-470: The past, and the suffering of Armenian people. The light purple appendages symbolise the present, and unity of Armenians. The five purple petals symbolise the future, and the five continents to which Armenians escaped. The yellow in the centre symbolises eternity, and the Tsitsernakaberd itself symbolises the 12 provinces lost to Turkey. In Lithuania , the flower has become one of the symbols for
1073-416: The place, rattling their canisters ostentatiously in the faces of customers. And I never saw a German formally refuse to drop in his mite, even though the contribution might have been less than the equivalent of one American cent. During these periodic money-raising campaigns, all sorts of dodges are employed. On busy street-corners comedians, singers, musicians, sailors, gather a crowd by some amusing skit, at
1110-470: The rarer ones sell for quite a lot of money today. The Can Rattlers, as they became known, were relentless in their pursuit of making sure every good German citizen gave their share to the WHW. In fact, those who forgot to give had their names put in the paper to remind them of their neglect. Neighbors and even family members were encouraged to whisper the names of shirkers to their block leaders so that they could persuade them to do their duty. On one occasion,
1147-482: The roaming bands of charity workers at bay. Donors were often given small souvenir gratitude gifts of negligible value, somewhat similar to the way modern charities mail out address labels and holiday cards. A typical such gift was a very small propaganda booklet, reminiscent of Victorian-era miniature books; about 0.8" wide x 1.5" tall. Booklets included The Führer Makes History , a collection of Hitler photographs, and Gerhard Koeppen and other decorated heroes of
Forget me not (disambiguation) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1184-607: The second largest mass organisation in Nazi Germany, behind the German Labour Front . At the onset of the Second World War , it had more than 10 million members. Hitler ordered the establishment of the Winterhilfswerk in 1933 and personally opened the first drive, giving out the directive "no one shall be hungry, no one shall freeze". The initial donation drive in winter 1933/1934 took place against
1221-643: The spiraling curvature of its inflorescence. The genus is largely restricted to western Eurasia, with over 60 confirmed species, and New Zealand with around 40 endemic species. A few species occur elsewhere, including North America, South America, and Papua New Guinea . Despite this, Myosotis species are now common throughout temperate latitudes because of the introduction of cultivars and alien species. Many are popular in horticulture . They prefer moist habitats. In locales where they are not native, they frequently escape to wetlands and riverbanks. One or two European species, especially Myosotis sylvatica ,
1258-440: The war. More generous donors would receive concomitantly better gifts, such as lapel pins on a wide variety of themes. Some depicting occupational types or geographic areas of the Reich, others animals, birds and insects, nursery rhyme and fairy tale characters, or notable persons from German history (including Hitler himself). They were made from a variety of materials. Each individual miniature book, badge, badge set or toy set
1295-687: Was actually served. Collection drives were a mainstay of the Winter Relief and those who did not give, or gave little (such as one pair of boots to a clothing drive), were sometimes the victims of mob violence and needed to be protected by the police, known in French as the Secours d'Hiver in Belgium. A paper Monatstürplakette (monthly placard) was issued to place on one's door or in one's window to show others that one had given and also to keep
1332-761: Was done with either. American diplomat William Russell's eyewitness book Berlin Embassy pointed out that no account was ever made of where the huge amounts raised by Winterhilfswerk were spent. His contention was not only that the program was a sham and that all the proceeds were used to produce armaments, but that the entire German population knew this to be the case. Similarly, the Gestapo reported persistent rumours that Winterhilfswerk funds were used for Nazi party and military purposes. Further, in 1936, Nazi Party treasurer Franz Xaver Schwarz commented to Deputy Führer Rudolf Hess "It has repeatedly become necessary for
1369-416: Was only available for two or three days of a particular collection drive. The populace would be encouraged to donate the following week and thereby collect the latest in the series. There could also be consequences such as nagging by the appropriate official if a local Blockleiter saw that someone was not wearing the current, appropriate pin by about Tuesday of the week. When he visited Germany in 1939 as
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